The Girl Behind It All
by pony832987
Summary: Thorin has worked very hard for his people to be happy in the Blue Mountains. That should be enough. But as time goes by Erebor calls to him more everyday. Though every one claims that they are happy, he knows that they would be happier in their true home. He knows she would be happier. Rated M in case I feel the need to go darkside.
1. Chapter 1

It has been a long time since Kyra slept so well. No nightmares, no waking up in the middle of the night to weird sounds, and no waking up tired and sore. She slept so well she didn't want to wake up, just stay in bed and never leave. As she started to wake up, still refusing to open her eyes, she could feel the sun warm her face. She smiled and sighed contently, something she hasn't done in a long time. But today everything fell in place, she had everything she wanted. A good nights sleep, a warm bed, and some one she loved to share it with.

The thought of him made her smile spread across her face. She stretched and sighed again as she rolled over. She wanted to get closer to him, to feel him under her, and feel his arms around her. But no one was in the bed next to her. She instantly sat up and looked around the room. Nothing. She was the only one there. He and all of his stuff were gone.

She shot out of bed instantly putting her clothes and gear on as fast as she could. It was when she ran to the chair in the corner of the room to grab her bow and sword that she noticed the note. She froze. She knew who it was from and what it probably said. Part of her didn't want to read it. With a shaky hand she picked up the letter and read it. "I will come back for you" was all it said. She shoved the note in the pocket of her trousers, grabbed her sword and bow and ran for the door.

People stared at her and judged her as she half ran to the stable. Partly because she was a woman in wearing trousers and partly because she had a sword and bow, two things women never wore. When she finally found the stable, the stable master gave her the same look as the rest of the towns people had, at first.

"I would like a horse please. Preferably a pony if you have one," she said as politely as she could as she dropped a bag of money on the stable master's desk. The old mans eyes went from judging to longing as he got a good look at Kyra. She had been told many times that she was beautiful but never believed them. She was short for a human, about the same height as a dwarf, with green eyes that made the red highlights in her curly brown hair to standout.

"What could a pretty thing like you need with a horse or pony when I'm right here?" the man answered as he looked her up and down. This was not the day to mess with her, at all. She rolled her eyes as she pulled out the dagger that hid in her boot and threw it down at the table. The dagger landed less than an inch from the mans hand, pining it there by his sleeve. Before he could say or do anything, Kyra was leaning over the table with a hand on the dagger.

"Just because I am a woman does not mean I am helpless and it does not mean that I carry this bow and sword around for show. Now if you don't mind I would like a horse or pony so I can be on my way." The dagger did just what Kyra had hopped it would. The mans eyes grew wide in fear as he realized he had messed with the wrong girl. He gave a shaky nod as she pulled the dagger from the table and stuck it back in her boot. Her ran off and soon returned with a black pony that was the perfect size for her. "How old?" Kyra asked. The pony looked young and strong but looks can be deceiving. Kyra planned to ride all day and all night, she needed a strong and young pony for that.

"Just turned six. She's very healthy, a bit of a handful but I think you can handle her. Her name is Carrot, it's her favorite treat," The man said as he handed the reins to Kyra. She took them and quickly swung herself up on the pony who danced under the sudden weight. Kyra smiled at the pony, she had a feeling they would get along just fine. "I've paid you more than enough for the pony," she said before taking off.

Unfortunately the note didn't tell Kyra which direction she should go, but fortunately for her she already knew, so she rode in the direction of the Shire. It was a two day ride from where Kyra bought the pony. It saddened her to know that the rest she had gotten the night before will be short lived since she had to ride through the night to get to the shire in time. The only good thing that favored her was that it was a clear night and the moon shined bright for her to see. It made the ride easier, it was still long and hard but easier.

It was almost noon the next day by the time Kyra reached the Shire and even then she never really reached it. She was about a mile or so from the Shire when a hobbit ran past her, making her pony dance, with a pack on his back and a paper in his hand. She smiled to herself and patted the pony before slowly following the hobbit. He was just what Kyra was looking for. After a few moments of following the hobbit, he led her straight to them. A wizard traveling with thirteen dwarfs. She smiled and watched from a far as the hobbit joined their company.

"Oh, I'm going to live to regret this Carrot. But this is to perfect to miss out," Kyra said to the pony who simply pawed the ground. To Kyra's surprise the pony still had energy after almost two days of a hard ride. Kyra chuckled softly before continuing to follow the dwarf company. She followed them for at least an hour before the hobbit ordered them to stop. Kyra had been looking for the perfect time to surprise the company and had decided to simply join them for dinner as if she was with them all day, but this worked as well.

She quietly rode up behind Dori and Nori, since they were the last in the group, and poked both in the back. They turned to see what on earth poked them to see a surprise. Kyra quickly singled them to remain quiet before they could announce that she was there. She did the same to Oin and Ori, Gloin and Bifur, and again to Bofur and Bombur, all who kept her secret and stayed quiet. Next were the hobbit and the wizard then Fili and Kili followed by Balin and Dwalin. Kyra had hopped to get closer to the front before getting to the wizard, she knew getting past Fili and Kili would be hard to manage without giving herself away, but the wizard was next to impossible.

She rode next to the wizard and simply waited for him to notice her. He smiled to himself before looking at her with his kind eyes. "Gandalf," she whispered. His smile grew as he chuckled to himself. It was just loud enough for Fili and Kili to hear, who turned around in suspicion. "Kyr-" they said together with smiles before Kyra cut them off. Before she could be given away completely, she spurred her pony to the front of the line to ride next to the leader. "I think you forgot something," she said as she neared the front.

Thorin stopped at the sound of her voice and turned. His face was mixed with anger and surprise, mainly anger. Kyra was furious that he had left her behind but that anger was instantly gone when she saw his face. Even though his ice blue eyes were filled with anger, they were still beautiful. Others had a hard time reading him, but she never did. She could always tell what he was thinking, no matter how hard he tried to hide it from her. She could tell that he hadn't slept well in a few days, he looked worn and tired, and the anger that was directed towards her didn't help.

"What are you doing here?" That was all he managed to say, he was too angry with her to say or ask anything else. Why she couldn't just listen is beyond me, he thought. He didn't want to leave her behind. If he had it his way she would never leave his sight, but leaving her was the only way to keep her safe. What else could he do?

"I told you, I won't let you leave me behind," she answered with a smirk.


	2. Chapter 2

"I left you so you would be safe. I told you to stay in the town of men, where you belong" he snapped. The whole company had stopped by now, all watching. Many of them have known Kyra for a long time and knew that she never argued with Thorin in front of everyone. They knew they shouldn't watch but they had never seen some one stand up to Thorin like this. Ever.

Kyra lost all humor as he spoke. She wanted so badly to say something back, but instead held her tongue. As much as she wanted to snap back at him, she didn't want to make him angrier. Instead she bit her lip and nudged her pony to move on. She had only taken a few steps away before something grabbed her arm, nearly ripping her off her pony.

"Kyra I will not let-"

"Since when have I ever followed orders like a dog? When have I ever let some one else speak for me? I decide where I belong. Not you. You can try to leave me again but it will not work Thorin. I was there when you made these plans," she spat back at him.

Kyra didn't know how much her words had hurt him, but they felt like a slap on his face. All he wanted was to know that she was safe while he reclaimed Erebor. He had tried once to convince her to stay in the Blue Mountains, with his sister Dis, so that she would be safe. But it was useless. She did what she wanted and there was no changing her mind.

"Damn it women, I am trying to keep you alive," he snapped quietly.

"If this journey is so dangerous that I will die, then you and the others should not be going." Kyra knew she had him backed in a corner. She hated fighting with him. In fact, she didn't like doing anything that didn't involve touching him in some form. But fighting with him was the only way to get what she wanted right now. She hated seeing him like this and if she didn't feel so strongly about her decision to come she would go back to the Blue Mountains to make him happy.

He let go of her arm and thought about the risk of letting her come. In truth, what choice did he have? She was right. She was there for every meeting they had about the journey to Erebor, she knew everything. Even if they did manage to leave her behind, there was no doubt she would meet with them again at the foot of Erebor.

"Uncle, she is good with sword-"

"And even better with a bow"

Thorin shot a glare to Fili and Kili for helping her. It was in times like this that he wished his nephews hadn't taken to her so much, they were always willing to be around her. Fili was right, she was better than most men with a sword. And with a bow…she was down right deadly with a bow. Every fiber of his being screamed at him, "DO NOT LET HER COME! WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF SHE WERE HURT! TIE HER TO A TREE IF YOU MUST BUT DO NOT LET HER COME!" He looked at her to make one last attempt to stop her, only to be met with those eyes of hers, those beautiful green eyes that just stared at him.

There were times when he thought she could see through him, like she knew every thought that was his. He hated her eyes. Not because they were ugly on her or he hated the color, he loved those eyes. He loved the way the green in them made the red in her hair stand out, making her hair look auburn. But he was useless when she unleashed their full power on him. And she knew it. He gave a heavy sigh as he breathed "Damn it" under his breath.

Kyra smiled, she had him beat. He glared at her reaction, he knew full well that this was going to come back to bite him later. She leaned over and placed a small kiss on his cheek as a thank you to him. Fili and Kili whistled together at the kiss. If there was one thing you could count on, it was Fili and Kili whistling when Kyra and Thorin kissed in any fashion.

"You watch the hobbit and keep the boys in line," Thorin whispered to her. She smiled and turned her pony to ride next to Fili and Kili. She would have gone straight to the hobbit to meet him but after he witnessed her fight with Thorin, she thought it better to wait so he was not frightened of her. After all he was already staying close to the wizard out of fear of the loud and boisterous dwarves. Besides, she had not seen Fili and Kili in some time, she missed them dearly.

Kyra could tell that they missed her as well. If it wasn't obvious enough by the big dopy looking smiles on their faces, they gave a small cheer when she came to ride with them. Kyra always loved their spirit and energy. She never had a family growing up, but when she did picture her life with a family it was like the one she had with Thorin, Fili, Kili, and Thorin's sister Dis. She loved every one of them very much, but there was a small special corner in her heart for Fili and Kili.

"Kyra?" Nori asked, after an hour or so of traveling.

"Yes?"

"Does this mean we don't have to eat Bofur's…meals?" Nori asked, pausing to try and find the right word that accurately described Bofur's cooking. After a quick thought he decided there was no word for what Bofur tried to pass as food. The whole company gave a small chuckle, every one but Bofur.

"No, Kyra is a terrible cook," Thorin answered, before Kyra could, as he looked back at her. She stuck her tongue at him, happy to see that he was no longer mad with her. Thorin smiled and gave a small chuckle at her response.

"I'm sorry to say, Nori, that Thorin is right. I am a terrible cook, but I doubt that Bofur is worse than I am," she said to Nori.

"Thank you, Kyra. I think…" Bofur said making every one chuckle again.

"I am so glad you came," Fili whispered to Kyra.

"This will be much more enjoyable with you here," Kili added.

"Well I couldn't just sit on the side while you boys had all the fun," Kyra said with a warm smile.

They all traveled quietly for a few hours, a few talking to the rider next to them, but that was soon put to an end. Kili suggested that they start singing to pass the time. Kyra was grateful, it was the perfect time to acquaint herself with the hobbit. After all he wouldn't know the songs and Kyra didn't like singing in front of others, humming yes singing no. Kyra quiet slowed down to ride next to Gandulf and quietly whispered, "May I have a chance to meet our new friend?" The wizard smiled and nodded as he spurred his horse to ride ahead next to Thorin.

"Where are you going Gandulf?" the hobbit asked.

"Master Thorin needs my assistance in which direction would be best for our travels, Master Baggins," Gandulf answered.

"May I ride with you?" Kyra asked kindly as she took Gandulf's place next to the hobbit. Of course the poor hobbit had no choice but to agree, he gave a shaky nod and stared and his pony's neck. Kyra felt sorry for the poor thing, she knew how he felt. It was hard enough getting used to traveling with Thorin, but when the others first joined them she was intimidated by them. And with every right. They were loud, blunt, and walked all over Kyra because she did not speak much. Kyra learned quickly to speak for herself and not back down. "My name is Kyra," she said after a moment and held her hand out to him.

He stared at her for a moment before taking her hand saying: "Bilbo Baggins. I saw you earlier; I do apologize if I spooked your pony." Kyra could tell that he tried his best to sound brave. Why did he come if he is scared of his own shadow, she wondered.

"Its alright, I was raised by a stable master and his wife, I can handle any pony or horse. Have you ridden before?" she asked trying to make conversation with him. She knew the more they talked the better chance that he would be less scared as the days past. Everything is better when you have a friend with you, and it would be easier for Kyra to keep an eye on him if he felt comfortable with her.

"No, never," he answered as he eyed his pony.

"Well it's a good thing you have a babysitter as your first pony. You'll be in good hands with her," Kyra said trying to reassure him

"Babysitter?"

"Your pony, she's kind, gentle, and very laid back. There is no need to worry about her, she won't spook at much and I do not think she will run unless it's to be with her friends. I am sure she will take very good care of you," she answered with a warm smile.

"How can you tell?" he asked puzzled. Truth is Kyra had a gift. There were many people who had been raised around horses and few of them could read a horse as well as Kyra.

"Well your reins are too loose to tell her where you want to go and instead of taking advantage of that, by going off to eat grass, she stays in line with the others. Her eyes are half closed as she walks which means she is content following her friends and you could probably do what ever you want on her and she wouldn't blink. I had a pony just like her when I was younger," Kyra answered with another warm smile. She could tell that her words had calmed him a little.

"He asked you to watch me didn't he?" Bilbo asked after a moment. Kyra looked at him out o the corner of her eye, what she saw had her wishing she hadn't come. Bilbo had his head hung looking sadly at his hands. The site made Kyra's heart ache. Once again she knew how he felt. When she had started traveling with Thorin he had made it clear he did not want her around. It was painfully clear that Thorin had given the same message to Bilbo.

"Not for the same reasons you would think," Kyra answered quietly.

"Am I wrong to think that he sees me as a burden and not a help?"

"No, but he thinks that of everyone at first. You just need to prove yourself, that's all."


	3. Chapter 3

The company traveled throughout the day, only taking stops to rest their ponies and stretch their legs. It was a good day so far, more than enough sun and a cool breeze that kept you from getting too hot. It did not take Bilbo long to warm up to Kyra. She stayed near him most of the day, answering any questions he had.

After what seemed like ages of traveling, they finally stopped for the night near a cliff on a mountain they were passing. They split into groups, directed by Thorin, gathering fire wood, starting a fire, and looking after the ponies.

"Fili, Kili, you will take first watch," Thorin said after everyone had eaten. Kyra watched him as he took a seat, about seven or eight feet from the fire, leaning against a wall of rocks next to the cliff. It bothered her that he did not speak directly to her at all that day. Was he really this mad? Some space and patience is all he needs right now, she thought to herself.

As everyone split up, getting ready for sleep, Kyra decided to take advantage of a chance to spend time with Fili and Kili. She walked over to them and settled herself in between them. They smiled at her, happy to have her there for company.

Every one was asleep, all but Fili, Kili, Gandulf, Balin, Kyra, and Bilbo, when a cry shattered the silence in their camp. "What was that?" Bilbo asked worried. Kyra, who was only half awake, shot up at the sound. A second cry soon reached their camp, waking Thorin up.

"Orcs," Kili answered.

"Orcs?" Bilbo asked, fear showing clearly on his face.

"Throat-cutters, there'll be dozens of them out there. The lone-lands are crawling with them," answered Fili.

"They strike in the wee small hours when everyone's asleep. Quick and quiet, no screams. Just lots of blood," Kili added.

Bilbo's eyes widened with fear. Kyra say Fili and Kili exchange smirks at the Hobbits expense. She was about to scold them both when Thorin beat her to it.

"You think a raid by Orcs is funny?" He snapped at them.

"I-I didn't think-" Kili murmured.

"No. You didn't. You know nothing of the world." With that, Thorin stalked off to check the edge of the camp. Kyra wanted so badly to go to him, but didn't move. She knew if she went to him now it was likely to end in another fight.

"Don't worry lad, Thorin has more reason than most to hate Orcs," Balin said trying to comfort Fili and Kili.

"Why?" Bilbo asked quietly.

"After the dragon took the LonelyMountain, King Thror tried to reclaim the ancient Dwarf kingdom of Moria. But our enemy had got there first. Moria had been taken by legions of Orcs, led by the most vile of all their race: Azog the Defiler. The giant Gundabad Orc had sworn to wipe out the line of Druin. He began…" Balin stopped taking a deep breath, as if it were a hard memory to recall, "By beheading the king. Thrain, Thorin's father, was driven made by grief. He went missing, taken prisoner, or killed, we do not know. We were leaderless. Defeat and death were upon us.

That is when I saw him. A young Dwarf prince, facing down the pale Orc. He stood alone against this terrible foe. His armor rent, wielding nothing but an oaken branch as a shield. He managed to cut off his left arm. Azog the Defiler learned that day that the line of Druin would not be so easily broken." The entire camp had woken up during Balin's story, listening intently as he continued. "Our forces rallied and drove the Orcs back. Our enemy had been defeated. But there was neither feast nor song that night. For our dead were beyond the count of grief. We few had survived. And I thought to myself then, there is on who I could follow-" Balin stopped, looking at the edge of the camp.

With out a word, the others stood and looked in the direction that Balin had. Thorin had come back to the camp. "There is one, I could call king." Thorin stood and watched, looking at the face of everyone there. When he saw Kyra, he began to slowly walk towards her. He stared at her as he held out his hand and waited for her to take it. After a moment she stood up and took his hand, silently following him as he led her to the edge of the camp.

Once they were far enough from the others to have a little privacy, Thorin sat down next to a fallen log. He gently pulled Kyra down to him, wrapping an arm around her as she leaned into him. They sat together silently, watching the stars in the sky, not saying a single word for what felt like hours.

"You never told me that. The story of how your grandfather died," Kyra said quietly.

"You never asked." Kyra poked his side and he breathed a laugh at her. She was happy to know that he was no longer angry with her. Even happier to be wrapped in his arms again.

"Do you forgive me then?"

"I will always forgive you," Thorin answered as he tilted her head up to look at him. He stared at her beautiful green eyes for what seemed like forever, smiling. His smile soon faded as he laid his hand on her cheek.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Why did you come?"

Kyra sighed before answering him. "To keep you from breaking another promise." Thorin looked at her, confusion on his face. She took his hand from her cheek, weaving her fingers through his. "You promised you would never leave me," She said quietly, looking down at their hands.

"And I haven't," he said sounding a little hurt.

"Yes, you did. In Nimear. And the note you left, you said you would come back for me." Kyra had spoken so quietly she could barely here herself. She feared if she spoke any louder her voice would shake. It truly hurt her that he had left her in Nimear. Like a piece of unwanted clothing.

"I would have kept my promise to you, Kyra. And I still will if you go back to the Blue-"

"I will not sit and wait for news that you are dead. You can not ask that of me, Thorin. I can't believe you, Fili and Kili asked that of Dis," She snapped.

Thorin was shocked at her words. He didn't know she felt so hurt by what he had done. After all it wasn't an easy decision to make. He didn't want to leave her. Hell, he didn't want her to leave his sight. But more than anything in the world, he wanted her to be safe. "I'm glad you came," he whispered after a moment.

Before she could say anything, tilted her head up and placed a soft kiss on her lips. Kyra quickly put a hand on the back of his neck before he could pull away from her. He pulled her closer to him as his tongue explored her bottom lip. Which only made her want him more than she already did. She couldn't help herself as she knotted he fingers in his hair, pulling herself closer to him, she want to feel every inch of him against her. He laughed at her reaction. No matter how mad she was at him, it was all easily forgotten with a kiss.

"Kyra," he said pulling away, "we should go back."

She smiled deviously. "Should and will are two very different things, my King." Before Thorin could object, Kyra had leaned into him making sure his lips were to busy to object.


	4. Chapter 4

By first light the entire company had packed their things and began traveling. The day was much like the one before, sunny, warm, and a cool breeze every once in awhile. Kyra, once again, rode next to Bilbo, with Fili and Kili behind them. Bilbo had grown quite comfortable with Kyra.

He was glad to have her around. She was kind to him and absolutely nothing like the Dwarves. As the day went on, he wondered more and more why she would want to be around them. After all she was one of the nicest people Bilbo has ever met, and these Dwarves were, well, rude.

"Kyra, may I ask you something?"

"Bilbo my friend, you can ask me what ever you like."

"Why have you come? I mean, what interest does a human have in the matter of Dwarves," Bilbo asked bluntly.

Kyra smiled to herself. She had wondered how long it would take for him to notice. After all she and Thorin tried to keep their affections for each other hidden in front of the others, out of respect for them.

"I am not entirely human, Bilbo. My father was a Dwarf, he worked for King Thror as a guard before he met my mother. My father told me stories about Erebor and King Thror and his family when I was a little girl. I guess I have always seen myself as one of the Dwarves from Erebor," She answered.

"Their eyes met in the crowd and they fell madly in love," Fili mocked. Kili, of course, pretended swoon like a young girl, causing both of them to nearly fall off their ponies laughing.

"Who?" Bilbo asked confused.

"Why Kyra and Thorin of course. That's why she really here," Kili answered.

"Well don't act too shocked, Bilbo," Kyra said laughing. She found the look on his face very amusing. The poor thing was so confused, Kyra knew she shouldn't laugh but couldn't help herself.

"I just can't imagine you would be happy with him," Bilbo said, more to himself than any one else. This angered Fili and Kili; they did not like any one talking of their Uncle so rudely. Kyra did not like it either but understood why Bilbo thought what he did about Thorin.

"There is another side to him that most do not know of. To be honest I never thought we would ever get along when we first met," Kyra trailed off, remembering the first time she had met him. It seemed like ages ago to her.

"Why is that?" Bilbo asked intrigued.

"When I first met Thorin, he was working as a black smith in the town of Nimear. Thorin kept his family ring on a chain around his neck; I knew exactly who he was when I saw it. Before my father died, he taught me all the symbols of the noble Dwarf blood lines. I was instantly excited. You see, I had dreams of leaving Nimear to travel throughout Middle earth and I knew he would be the one to make those dreams reality.

When I asked him to take me with him the next time he traveled, he said the road was no place for a woman and that no amount of money would change his mind. So I followed him. He was furious with me and made sure that I knew I wasn't welcomed. Of course he did not know that I could handle a sword and bow as well as any man. My father thought it wise for me to know how to fight. Thorin did not think I could handle my own until I killed three thieves that attacked us one night, on my own. Once I proved to him that I was not a burden, we got along much better. And we have traveled together since." Kyra missed those days. Things were much simpler then.

/

Every one fell quiet when the weather changed. After a few hours it had begun to rain, heavily. They all walked for some time before some one spoke up.

"Gandalf, you're a wizard. Can't you make the rain stop?" Dori asked.

"If you would like to change the weather, master dwarf, I suggest you find another wizard," Gandalf answered shortly.

"Are there any? Wizards I mean," Bilbo asked after a moment.

"There are five wizards in Middle Earth, Mr. Baggins. The greatest of us is Sarmon the White. Then there are the two Blue wizards-….I do believe I have quite forgotten their names…"

"And the fifth?"

"Oh that would be Radagast the Brown."

"Is he a great wizard? Or is he more like you?"

"I think he is a very great wizard, in his own way," Gandalf answered after a moment. "He's a gentle soul who prefers the company of animals to others. He keeps a watchful eye of the vast forest lands to the east. And a good thing too. For always evil will look to find a foothold in this world," he continued.

/

Kyra was deep in thought, still thinking about what Gandalf had said about wizards and wondered what life was like as a wizard, when she felt someone nudge her. She snapped back to reality to see Thorin ridding next to her, with a worried look on his face.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing, just thinking," Kyra answered with a small smile.

Thorin stared at her for a moment before deciding to believe her. "Take Fili and Kili with you and ride ahead. Looks to be an abandoned farm at the bottom of the hill make sure it's safe for the night," he said. Kyra smiled and signaled Fili and Kili to follow her. "Kyra," Thorin said before she rode ahead, "please be careful."

"Of course," she said with a smile before leaning in to place a small kiss on his lips. She pulled away from him to see doubt and worry clear on his face. She smiled one more time in attempt to reassure him. "Fili, Kili, I'll race you to the bottom of the hill," she said spurring her pony, who was happy to do something other than walking.

The three of them raced down the hill giggling and laughing as they went. It didn't take them long to reach the abandoned farm Thorin spoke of. "Check for any sign that something might be lurking in thee shadows," Kyra said as she got off her pony and tied her to a tree. Fili and Kili nodded and want about checking around the farm land, while Kyra checked the house and barn.

At first glance it looked as if the land had been abandoned long ago. But with a closer look Kyra wondered if this place had been attacked, not abandoned. Kyra began to feel that something was wrong, but was quickly ignored it when Fili and Kili came back.

"We found no sign of anything," Fili said.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Is something wrong?"

"No, its nothing."

"Kyra!" It was Thorin yelling her name. She quickly decided that it was best to keep her suspicions about the farm to herself.

"Here," she said walking out of the ruins of the house. "No sign of anything dangerous," she said answering his unspoken question.

"We'll camp here for the night," Thorin said to the others. With a sigh of relief, the company got off of their ponies and started to unpack. "Kyra, is something troubling you?" Thorin said quietly. He knew her well enough to know when she was hiding something from him. He pulled her close to him, hoping she would feel safer wrapped in his arms.

"Something feels off. I don't know what it is, Fili and Kili checked the land and found nothing, but…Something doesn't feel right," she answered, leaning against him.

"I agree, Kyra," Gandalf said as he approached where Thorin and Kyra stood, just outside what was left of the house. "A farmer and his wife lived here. I think it would be wise to move on, we could make for the HiddenValley," he said inspecting the ruins.

"I have told you already, I will not go near that place," Thorin said as he let go of Kyra and walked towards Gandalf.

Kyra loved Thorin with all her heart, but sometimes she hated him for letting his bitterness cloud his judgment. She understood why he held a grudge against the elves, but did not understand why he would risk the safety of the ones he loved over it. This journey would go a lot smoother if only his judgment was not so clouded, she thought to herself.

"Why not? The Elves could help us. We could get food, rest, advice," Gandalf pleaded.

"I do not need their advice," Thorin said shortly.

"We have a map that we cannot read. Lord Elrond could help us."

"Help? A Dragon attacks Erebor. What help came from the Elves? Orcs plunder Moria, desecrate our sacred halls. The Elves looked on and did nothing. And you ask me to seek out the very people who betrayed my grandfather. Who betrayed my father," Thorin said with hate hanging on every word.

"You are neither of them. I did not give you that map and key to hold on to the past." Kyra could tell that Gandalf's patience was growing thin. She began to wonder how much longer it would take, before Thorin's stubbornness pushed Gandalf to loose his patience.

"I did not know they were yours to keep," Thorin snapped.

Gandalf sighed. He had enough. Instead of saying something rash and starting a fight with Thorin, he simply turned and stormed off. "Gandalf, where are you going?" Bilbo asked. He had watched the whole thing from a far, but did not know what they were talking about.

"To seek the company of the only one around here who's got any sense," Gandalf snapped.

"And who's that?"

"Myself, Mr. Baggins! I've had enough Dwarves for one day."

"Kyra-" Thorin said wrapping his arms around her waist.

"The boys and I will look after the ponies," she said, unwrapping his arms from around her waist. She knew she had hurt him, but she was too angry to really care. She would do anything he wanted her too, but she would not risk the lives of people she loved because he was too proud. "Fili, Kili, get the ponies," she said walking away from Thorin.

Fili and Kili followed her, gathering the ponies and leading them to a corral on the far side of the barn. It was far enough away you could not see the others through the trees. Kyra was glad, she wanted some time with Fili and Kili, and some time to cool off.

Kyra was too angry and too lost in her own thoughts to be of much help. In fact the only thing she did was take care of her own pony, before sitting on a log before loosing herself completely in her mind. Gandalf was right; they needed the help of the Elves. With out their help, they would never get inside the LonelyMountain.

She was so lost in thought she didn't notice Fili and Kili sitting on either side of her. They had heard the whole conversation with Thorin and Gandalf, and they knew all to well how stubborn their uncle could be. They also knew that Kyra was the only person they have ever met that could talk any form of sense into him. They sat and stared at her for a moment, waiting for her to notice them, before deciding to nudge her.

"Kyra," they said together after the nudge didn't work.

"I'm sorry, did you say something?" Kyra asked after a moment.

"You should talk to him," Fili said quietly.

"You're the only one here who has a chance to change his mind," Kili added.

"He doesn't listen when he's like this, you know that," Kyra said quietly.

"Well not to us," Kili said.

"But he just might listen to you," Fili added.

Kyra thought about it for a moment, she wasn't as sure of her hold on Thorin as they were. After all she had tried desperately to convince him not to go on this journey, and failed. "Can I trust you to look after the ponies on your own?" she asked after a long pause.

"Why of course," they said together with dopy smiles.


	5. Chapter 5

Kyra walked slowly back to the camp where the others were, where he was. She tried to think of something to say as she walked back, but came up with nothing. Before she knew it, she was standing on the edge of the camp. She was still standing in the trees, hidden from site, when she noticed him.

Thorin was sitting on the steps of the abandoned house. He had a bowl of soup in his hands but did not seem interested in it. After staring at it for some time, he set it beside him and began rubbing his face in his hands. Kyra felt her heart crack. He looked so tiered and beaten. She couldn't help but feel responsible.

She wanted to stay mad at him, but simply couldn't. She sighed to herself as she walked around the camp, remaining hidden in the trees, to where Thorin sat. She paused and stared at him, trying to give herself more time to think. She sighed to herself, after realizing she had nothing. She didn't even have anger to help her. Usually when she was angry but had nothing to say, her tongue magically spoke what it wanted. Of course it almost always got her in trouble. But the one time she counted on it, was the one time not even her anger could help her.

Kyra quietly walked up to him, picking up the bowl of soup and sitting down on the step behind him. "You should eat. We can't do this without you," Kyra whispered, gently placing the bowl in his hands. He took the bowl and placed it on the step next to him.

"I am not hungry," he said. He took her hand, entwining his fingers with hers. Kyra scooted closer to him in response. She ought to be angry with him, but all she wanted to do was comfort him. She could feel him relax a little; she leaned on him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Do you remember the day we met?" she asked after a moment.

Thorin laughed and smiled to himself before answering. "I remember the day you asked to travel with me." He chuckled under his breath, "and the day you followed me."

"You were so mad, you pinned me to a tree," Kyra said laughing. "I knocked you flat on your back," she whispered.

"Lucky shot."

"If you do not want to go to the Elves, I understand. All I ask is that you do what is best for those brave enough to follow you on this journey," Kyra said before placing a small kiss on his cheek.

"We do not need the help of Elves."

"Aye, but our chances could only improve. I only ask that you consider it, for me."

Thorin turned to look at her for the fist time since she sat down. He expected to see anger and frustration on her face, but neither showed on her face. Instead he saw the same love and compassion he had grown to love. He loved every single thing about her. Her intense green eyes, her long curly auburn hair, the way her lips felt on his, even her stubbornness.

Thorin pulled her to him, softly placing his lips on hers. Kyra relaxed into him, placing a hand on the back of his neck. The kiss grew stronger and stronger with every passing second. Thorin's hand slid up her leg as he began to kiss her neck, sending electric currents through Kyra's body. She gave a small moan as she tangled her fingers in his hair. She gently pulled Thorin's lips back to hers, letting her tongue explore his mouth. The current running in her body intensified. She pulled him closer to her; suddenly wanting to touch him as much as she could. Suddenly, to Kyra's disappointment, he pulled away from her.

She frowned at him. Partly because she didn't want to stop kissing him, ever, and partly because she was jealous of him. She never had the strength to pull away first. Thorin laughed softly at the look she gave him.

"What?"

"Nothing," he answered with a smile before giving her another kiss.

This time neither of them had to pull away first. Fili and Kili suddenly came running into the camp yelling, "Quick! Grab your weapons!"

"What on earth is going on?" Gloin demanded.

"Trolls," answered Kili. "They stole some of the ponies. Bilbo, he thought he could get them back. We should be ready just in case," Fili added, handing Kyra her bow and sword. "You might need these."

Everyone gathered their weapons and followed Fili and Kili to the trolls. Not far from the camp were three mountain trolls, and Bilbo. Kyra gasped at what she saw, Bilbo hung upside down from a hand of a troll as they determined how to eat him.

"Kyra, Kili, get their attention. The rest, ambush them from the side," Thorin whispered to the company.

Kyra and Kili crept closer to the edge of the troll's camp. "Ready?" she whispered pulling an arrow from her quiver. Kili answered with a nod as he began to draw is bow.

"Down here ugly!" Kyra yelled as she and Kili stepped out from the trees, bows drawn. Before the trolls could say or do anything, Kyra let loose an arrow, hitting the hand of the troll holding Bilbo. With a yelp the troll dropped Bilbo, hard. Not a moment too soon, the others came out of the trees attacking the trolls.

Kyra stood her ground shooting arrows at the trolls, until the smallest troll came straight towards her. He swung an arm at her, which she just barely missed before rolling aside. She drew her sword and ran toward the troll swinging at his legs. She slashed the back of the troll's ankle, causing him to fall to one knee in pain. Before he could get back up, Kyra climbed her way on to his back. Unfortunately, she was did not have enough time to drive her sword through the trolls neck before he stood up, forcing her to jump to the nearest troll, the biggest of the three.

Kyra managed to land on the trolls shoulder and drive her sword into his back, before she was thrown to the ground. As soon as she hit the ground she was on her feet looking for the nearest troll for her to attack. She didn't have to wait long before she saw Bombur grabbed by a troll blind in one eye, who was drawing his knife to cut Bombur in half. With out thinking, she charged the troll. She ran up his leg, getting herself close enough to slice the troll's hand. She and Bombur hit the ground hard enough to stun them for a moment. Kyra saw just in time to see the troll raise his foot in attempt to squash them. She rolled out of the way only to be grabbed by they troll.

Luckily, Bombur returned the favor she had given him, and threw his ax at the trolls head, causing the troll to drop her. Kyra screamed as pain shot through her side. Without pausing to see if she had been hurt, she rolled to her feet ready to fight. By the time Kyra had gotten back to her feet, the trolls had a hold of Bilbo by the arms and legs.

"Stop!" a troll yelled. "Lay down your arms or we'll rip his off!" another yelled. Kyra looked at Thorin, who was now standing next to her with the other Dwarves, wondering what to do next. To her surprise, he immediately threw his sword down. She and the others followed his action with great hesitation. The trolls quickly gathered the Dwarves, putting half of them tied up in sacks and the others tied to a log to roast over the fire.

"Don't bother cooking 'em. Let's just sit on them and squash them into jelly," said the smallest of the trolls.

It was then Kyra realized that there was no way out of this. They were going to die. She had to admit, this was not how she imagined her death. Although, she was grateful that she was near Thorin before she died. It gave her a chance to tell him she loved him. "Thorin," she whispered behind her, "I love you."

"No, we are not dying here," he whispered back. She smiled to herself. Even when death stared them in the face, he refused to give up.

"They should be sautéed grilled, with a sprinkle of sage," said the troll with a blind eye.

"Mmmm, that does sound quite nice," replied the small one.

"Never mind the seasoning. We ain't got all night. Dawn ain't far away. Let's get a move on. I don't fancy being turned into stone," snapped the largest of the three trolls.

Bilbo, who had been cursing his decision to leave his home, was suddenly stuck with an idea. "Wait!" he yelled without thinking,"You are making a terrible mistake. I meant about the seasoning," he said getting up to hop, since he was also tied up in a sack, closer to the trolls.

"What do you mean?" asked the troll with a blind eye.

"Well, have you smelt them? You're going to need something stronger than sage before you plate this lot up."

"What do you know about cooking Dwarf?" asked the big troll.

"Shut up," said the one with a blind eye, "let the flurgaburburhobbit talk."

Bilbo gave an uneasy smile. He hadn't thought this far ahead. And the shouts form the Dwarves, claiming him a traitor, didn't help him think. "Uh-well the secret to cooking Dwarf is um…is-"

"Yes? Come on. Tell us the secret."

"Yes, I'm telling you. The secret is…to…skin them first." The shouts from the Dwarves only got worse. Bilbo understood why, but it was the first thing that came to his head. In fact he was luck anything came to his head, he honestly didn't think it would be that hard to stall three trolls.

"What a load of rubbish. I've eaten plenty with their skins on. Scarf them, I say, boots and all," said the big troll.

Bilbo panicked for a moment. Had he just made things worse? Why I didn't keep my mouth shut, he thought to himself. Just then out of the corner of his eye, he saw something move on the rocks next to him. Gandalf, he thought.

"He's right," said the small troll, "nothing wrong with a bit of raw Dwarf."

Before Bilbo knew what had happened, the smaller troll picked up Bombur and prepared to eat him. "Not that one!" Bilbo yelled. "He's got worms in his…..tubes."

"Eww!" shrieked the small troll as he dropped Bombur.

"In fact they are all infected with parasites. I wouldn't risk it, I really wouldn't," Bilbo added quickly.

The Dwarves instantly cried out in protest to Bilbo's statement. None of them knew what he was doing. It took Thorin a moment, but he connected the dots just in time to help Bilbo. He kicked the nearest Dwarf, Kili, and glared at him. Kili instantly understood and began to shout in agreement with Bilbo. Luckily the others followed him and began to shout in agreement with Bilbo.

"What would you have us all do then? Let them all go?" the big troll asked as he stomped over to Bilbo. Bilbo shrugged, hopping the trolls would do it with out him saying anything. "You think I don't know what you're up to?" the troll said angered as he poked Bilbo. "This little ferret is taking us for fools," he said to his friends.

"Fools?" the little one asked.

"The dawn will take you all!" Gandalf yelled from the rocks behind the Dwarves. He then drove his walking stick into the rock, causing it to split. With nothing blocking the sun, the trolls turned to stone. Once he made sure the trolls were done for good, Gandalf went to untying the Dwarves.

"Where may did you go may I ask," Thorin asked Gandalf grumpily, being almost eaten by Dwarves did not put him in a good mood.

"To look ahead."

"What brought you back?"

"Looking behind. Nasty business. Still though you're all in one piece."

"No thanks you your burglar," Thorin snapped.

"He had the thought to stall for time when the rest of us didn't. At least give him that," Kyra said waking up to Thorin. Thorin sighed, but said nothing. "Since when do mountain trolls venture this far south?" Kyra asked.

"Ooh, not for an age. Not since a darker power ruled these lands," Gandalf answered quietly.

"Well there must be a cave. They could not have traveled during the day," Kyra said. She looked around her and found exactly what she was looking for. "There," she said pointing to it. She walked towards it, the others following her, only to be met with a foul smell. "Go ahead, I'll wait here."

Thorin smiled to himself, Kyra only acted like a woman when it suited her, but said nothing. Kyra sat on a boulder far enough from the cave that she could not smell it. She watched quietly as everyone funneled into the cave, all but one.

Dori could barely be counted as a man, so it did not surprise Kyra to see him sit next to her. She could tell he was anxious and scared. "Its Ok Dori, I don't like it in there either," Kyra said with a warm smile. Dori relaxed and returned the smile. They sat quietly, waiting for the others to come back out.

"Find anything?" Kyra asked Thorin as he approached her.

"Nothing of value," he answered. Kyra saw the Elvin sword in Thorin's hand and knew its value was great. But anything made by Elves would be worthless to him. She gave a tired smile and nodded. She was beginning to feel exhausted. "What's wrong?"

"Hm? Nothing just tired," she said lazily.

Thorin knew better than to believe her. Something was wrong, very wrong. He began examining her, looking for a sign that proved he was right. It didn't take him long to find something out of place. The right side of her clothes over her stomach was colored dark red.

Blood.


	6. Chapter 6

"Thorin?" Kyra asked worried. His face had suddenly gone white with fear. He was so still, Kyra worried that he was no longer breathing.

The sound of her voice snapped him back to reality, partly. He couldn't speak, he could barely breath. He managed to stretch out a shaky hand to lift her armor and shirt. The others simply stared at what they saw. It was a shallow wound but stretched from Kyra's side to her navel. It was not the length of the wound that worried everyone; it was the amount of blood covering the right side of Kyra's stomach.

"Someone get a bandage, now," Thorin said quietly.

No one moved while Fili and Kili ran to get the bandages. Kyra examined her stomach thoroughly, wondering how bad the wound really was. She soon decided that it looked worse than it was. She suddenly became very aware of Thorin, or rather his lack of movement.

The look she saw on his face was pure fear. He looks as if he had seen a ghost, she thought. Kyra instantly wanted to comfort him, tell him everything was going to be fine, that the wound was nothing but a scratch and she would perfectly fine by morning the next day. But she couldn't, she had lost too much blood. It would be a lie if she said she didn't feel tired and dizzy.

"Thorin, I'm not going any where," Kyra said quietly, trying to comfort him.

As if on cue, Fili and Kili came back as Kyra spoke, bandages in hand. Before they could tend to her wound Dwalin suddenly yelled "Some things coming! Ready yourselves!" Thorin immediately pulled Kyra to her feet, shoving her behind him as he pulled out his sword, with an arm behind him wrapped around her.

Ten rabbits pulling a sled came running towards them, stopping in the center of the group. "Thieves! Fire! Murder!" screamed the man on the sled. He was wearing brown tattered robes and an old hat that looked much like Gandalf's.

"Radagast," Gandalf sighed. "It's alright everyone. This is Radagast, the Brown." Kyra felt Thorin relax around her as Gandalf spoke to the new Wizard.

"Gandalf! I must talk to you! Something terrible is happening," Radagast said franticly.

Gandalf nodded and led his friend away from the Dwarves for some privacy. He did not want to worry the others if he didn't have too; especially knowing they needed to look after Kyra.

Kyra all but fell against Thorin, she was so tired. It was everything she could do just to stay awake and try her best to act like she was Ok. She let Thorin lead her to a boulder to sit while Fili and Kili tended to her stomach. It didn't take them long to clean the blood off and wrap the bandages around her stomach to stop the bleeding.

"Thorin, I just need rest that's all," Kyra said when she noticed him staring at her stomach. Some color had returned to his face but the fear in his eyes stayed.

After a moment he sat down next to her, putting an arm around her while she leaned against him. She could feel him shaking around her. She took his hand, weaving her fingers tightly through his, letting him know she was right there next to him. He let out a sigh of relief, relaxing at her touch.

The others remained quiet, some taking a seat others standing watch, relieved that Kyra was Ok. They all loved her for different reasons. Fili and Kili had been almost as scared as Thorin; they loved Kyra just as much as Thorin did. They loved that she would joke with them and tease them as if she were their sister. Balin had always liked that she balanced Thorin, and Dwalin liked that she was just as good in a fight as any other man. They all liked how nice she was and that she wasn't a normal girl. Definitely not the type of woman you would meet everyday in the market.

She could be girly when it suited her, but for the most part she acted just like they did. She didn't get offended at their bad manners or dirty jokes, sometimes she joined them, and she had a quick tongue. They didn't mind that she traveled with them because she wasn't helpless like other girls. Kyra could fight, she knew how defend herself. But it was more than just that. She was as important to them as the rest of the Dwarves there were. To them she was as important as Thorin was. They didn't want to see her hurt anymore than they wanted to see Thorin hurt.

After a few minutes, a howl shattered the silence around them. Everyone stood at once at the sound, arming themselves.

"What was that? A wolf?" Bilbo asked.

"A wolf, no. That wasn't a wolf," Bofur answered worried.

Kyra saw the thing that made the sound standing on the rocks behind Bofur. A Warg. Large, hideous, mean creatures that were never far from Orcs. Kyra's adrenalin kicked in when she saw the thing crouch. "Bofur! Behind you!" she yelled.

Thorin pushed him out of the way just in time to miss the Warg. Thorin drove his sword through the Wargs neck before it had a chance to attack any one. "Warg scouts. A pack can not be far behind," he said.

"Who did you tell of your mission other than your kin?" Gandalf exploded.

"No one," Thorin answered.

"Who!"

"No one, I swear it! What in Durins name is going on?"

"You're being hunted."

"We need to get out of here," Fili and Kili said together.

"We can't, the ponies bolted," Ori said panicked.

"I'll draw them off," Radagast said.

"These are Gundabad Wargs, they will out run you," Gandalf snapped.

"These are Ruskabell rabbits; I would like to see them try." Before anyone could object, Radagast was already gone on his sleigh.

Everyone quickly grabbed their weapons and ran out of the forest, following Gandalf. Adrenalin was suddenly surging through Kyra's body as she followed everyone. Gandalf led them to a rolling valley with giant rocks scattered throughout the land. Radagast did his best to keep the Orcs and Wargs on him, but there were still many close calls. Many times the Dwarves were almost spotted, making them change their direction by quickly hiding behind a giant boulder.

Their luck soon ran out. An Orc had thought he saw something move by a giant boulder and broke off from the pack to investigate. He was right; the boulder he stood on was just above the Dwarves. Kyra slowly pulled an arrow from her quiver. She was ready to draw her bow and step into view of the Orc to take her shot when Thorin stretched an arm out in front of her.

She glared at him, and he glared back. They knew what the other was thinking. She was so sure she could hit both the Orc and Warg before either made a sound. But Thorin worried about her wound, with the amount of blood she lost, she may not still have the strength to pull back her bow. He singled Kili to take the shot.

Not Kili, she thought, he won't make the shot. Kili was very good with a bow, almost as good as Kyra, when they were hunting. But not in battle. He was just a boy. He has barely seen battle, she thought. She wanted to yell at Thorin for making the wrong choice. She should have been happy that he had so much faith in his nephew, but she knew better.

She knew the adrenalin and fear would throw him off, just like it would throw anyone who has barely seen battle. Kyra hadn't seen much more battle than Kili, but the adrenalin wasn't a problem for her. She quickly learned how to use it as a strength instead of a weakness, she was a better shot with adrenalin running through her.

Kyra watched Kili pull an arrow from his quiver, put it to his bow, and take a deep breath trying to steady himself. He looked to Kyra for assurance that he could make the shot. Though she had little faith in him, she gave him a firm nod. He took another deep breath and stepped out. The second he saw the Orc and Warg he shot his arrow, hitting the Wargs shoulder.

With a loud yelp, the Warg fell off the boulder causing the Orc to fall off. Before anyone could move, Kyra shot an arrow straight into the Orcs head then another in the Wargs. She had hopped she would be quick enough to silence them before they could alert the rest of the pack where they were. But no matter how fast she acted, it wouldn't work. The rest of the Orcs and Wargs stopped chasing Radagst as soon as they heard the cry from the Warg Kili shot.

"Run!" Gandalf yelled.

They made it over the next hill before being completely surrounded in a large circle by Wargs.

"Kili, Kyra, shoot them!" Thorin yelled.

Kyra knew by the second arrow she let loose from her bow, hitting a closely approaching Warg in the heart, that there were too many of them.

"Where is Gandalf?" Nori shouted.

"He's abandoned us!" Dwalin answered.

Every one was so focused on the Wargs slowly approaching them that no one noticed Gandalf disappearing behind a small boulder. If they had, they would have known that he had not really abandoned them.

"Down here you fools!" Gandalf shouted, popping out behind the small boulder.

Thorin ran to Gandalf. Behind the little boulder was an opening to an underground cave. "Quickly," he yelled as he motioned everyone to follow Gandalf.

"Go, I'll cover you," Kyra said to Kili as she shot another Warg, hitting him in the eye. She smiled to herself, she blinded and killed a Warg in a single shot.

"Kyra!" Thorin yelled after realizing that only Kili slid down into the cave.

Kyra shot one last arrow, hitting the closet Warg to her in the head, before running to the cave. She was just about to slide down into the cave when she saw a Warg come up behind Thorin. Without thinking, she shoved Thorin in to the cave and out of the Wargs way. But she didn't have enough time to move out of the way herself. The Warg leaped towards her catching her left leg into its mouth. She screamed as she fell to the ground, loosing her bow and sword.

The second Thorin hit the cave floor; he rolled to his feet, looking up at the cave opening waiting for Kyra to slide down. The moment he heard her scream he tried to climb his way out of the cave. With the sudden surge of adrenalin, he might have made it in time to help her. But the other Dwarves held him back, knowing that he would die if he made it out of the cave.

The Warg tightened its grip on Kyra's leg at the sound of her scream. She screamed again, louder than before under, as pain the shot through her body. With all the adrenalin ragging through her, she soon remembered the dagger she kept in her boot. She quickly pulled it out and drove it into the side of the Wargs neck. The Warg tossed her towards the opening of the cave, causing her to roll down it and hitting her head hard on the cave floor.

"Kyra!" Thorin yelled as he knelt next to her.

"I'm Ok," she said slowly standing up. She wanted to prove Thorin that she really was Ok and that she didn't need the arm that he wrapped around her waist to support her, but she was to dizzy. She tried to stand on her own but couldn't see straight. Her eyes wouldn't focus on anything no matter how hard she tried. The edge of her vision started to go black, she willed herself to fight it off. She soon gave up on standing on her own and leaned against Thorin, letting him support her.

She started to think that she really wasn't Ok. It became hard to breath and hard to support her own weight. Every sound made around her, sounded like it was miles away. She started to feel like she was under water, drowning.

The other Dwarves immediately surrounded them, ready to fight. A moment later they heard a horn and what sounded like hooves running across the ground above them. Cry's and shrieks came from the ground above them. A dead Orc rolled down into the cave, landing at the Dwarves feet. Fili poked the dead body with his sword as his brother pulled the silver arrow from its back.

"Elves," he said handing it to Thorin after examining it.

Thorin took the arrow and glared at it with hate before throwing it to the ground. He hated the idea of going to them for help with all his heart. But he hated the idea of being in their debt even more. As the sound of the hooves on the ground above them faded, he hopped he would never have to thank them for saving their lives.

"Thorin," Kyra whispered before going limp. The

"Kyra?" he said worried as he caught her, just before she hit the ground. He laid her down slowly, trying to move her as little as possible. "Kyra. Kyra open your eyes."

The voice she heard sounded far away and muffled, she couldn't tell who it came from. Though she didn't know who the voice belonged to, she tried desperately to obey it. She fought the darkness that surrounded her as hard as she could, but couldn't win. She didn't have the energy. She wanted to let the darkness swallow her just so she could rest, but knew better.

"She's loosing too much blood," Bilbo said.

Fili and Kili, who had been frozen with fear, snapped back to life ripping off their coats. Bifur was the first to realize what they were doing and immediately took off the belt that held his sward at his side, handing it to Fili and Kili. Balin, Gloin, and Oin followed Bifurs actions. Fili and Kili took the belts and tied them around Kyra's leg, holding their coats in place, hoping that would be enough to stop the bleeding.

Kyra gave a small yelp at the pain and pressure the belts added to the already throbbing leg. As much as it hurt, Kyra was glad she felt the pain. It told her that she was still alive; she still had a chance to fight off the darkness.

"Come on Kyra, open those beautiful green eyes," a voice whispered.

Every voice she heard sounded the same and they were all hard to understand. But this one…this one was clear and familiar. Kyra fought against the darkness, willing herself to open her eyes. Thorin's face was the first thing Kyra saw when she opened her eyes. Fear and worry showed clearly on his face, but she didn't care. She was just happy to see it again. Thorin smiled at her, he thought he would never see those green eyes ever again.

"Is everyone Ok?" she choked out.

Everyone breathed a shaky chuckle. Even as she was dying, she was still worried about other people. But their moment of relief was short lived. Kyra didn't have the strength to keep her eyes open for longer than a few moments. Her eyes soon closed and she was once again surrounded by darkness.


	7. Chapter 7

**I just want to take a second to say thanks to you nice wonderful people that comments on my story and follow it. This is my first fanfiction and I never thought so many people would like it. I also wanted to say sorry for taking so long to update school has been crazy this past week, and I wanted to say sorry in advanced for the next chapter... I'm going to try my best to update soon but I feel like my weekend will be just as crazy as the rest of the week has, so I'm sorry if it takes me awhile to update. Enjoy!**

/

"I can't see where this path leads. Should we follow it?" Dwalin asked, who had been looking for a way out of the cave since Kyra opened her eyes.

"Follow it of course," Bofur answered.

Thorin handed his sword to Kili before scooping Kyra into his arms. Kyra vaguely knew she was being carried, and she was not happy. She hated being treated like a helpless girl. She squirmed in Thorin's arms trying to push him away. "I don't need help," she whispered weakly. Part of Thorin was glad she still had the strength to be her stubborn self, but he wondered how long she could keep it up.

After about an hour of walking, the path led the Dwarves to a cliff overlooking a large valley. The valley had many water falls and rivers twisting and bending throughout it. Beautiful large open buildings covered by vines and trees stood in the middle. Thorin knew exactly where he was, and he was not happy at all.

"The Valley of Imladris. In the common tongue, it's known by another name," Gandalf said as everyone took in the sight of the valley.

"Rivendell," Bilbo breathed in pure amazement

"You planned this. To seek refuge with our enemy," he snapped at Gandalf.

"You have no enemies here, Thorin Oakenshield. What ever ill will you find here, is that which you bring yourself," Gandalf snapped back. "Now this will need to be handled with respect, tact, and no small degree of charm, and that is why you will leave the talking to me."

"I will not ask help from the very people who did not answer when I called to them-"

"Thorin," Kyra whispered. For most of their walk to Rivendell, she was surrounded by darkness. But she managed to fight against it long enough to open her eyes for seconds at a time. Even while she fought against the darkness, she made sure she could feel Thorin around her. He was the only reason she fought so hard to stay awake, he was the thing that told her she still had a chance. But she was growing weaker; she knew she didn't have enough strength to keep fighting much longer. "Thorin…it…it hurts," she stuttered as she buried her face in his chest.

"They can help her," Gandalf said quietly.

Thorin didn't want to go to the Elves for help, but had no choice. He nodded to Gandalf and let him lead the way down to the valley. They were soon in the grand entrance of the Elf city, being greeted by a tall slender man in dark blue robes. "Mithrandir," he said lovingly.

"Ah, Lindir. I hate to be rude but we are in desperate need of Lord Elrond," Gandalf said as politely as he could.

"My Lord Elrond is not here. What is so wrong that you must dispense of formality?"

"The girl, she has lost a lot of blood," Gandalf answered indicating the lifeless body in Thorin's arms.

Lindirs eyes went wide as he saw the state that Kyra was in. "I will take her to our healers and make sure Lord Elrond sees to her the moment he returns," he assured Gandalf. He moved to Thorin expanding his arms offering to take her from him.

Kyra was too weak to move or say anything but she could still here the muffled voices around her. She didn't want to be taken away by the strange voice; she was too afraid that without Thorin the darkness would eat her whole. She faintly heard some one assure Thorin that she would be safe in the hands of the strange voice. For a moment she thought Thorin would refuse to give her away, but that hope was short lived. She felt him sigh around her as he gently placed her in the arms of the strange voice.

She tried to gather any strength left in her to fight back, but instead became swallowed completely by the darkness.

Thorin watched as the Elf walked away with Kyra's limp body in his arms. Every bone his body told him to follow her, to make sure she was Ok, but he knew he would just be in the way. Fili and Kili, on the other hand, were not thinking as clearly as Thorin. They waited for Thorin to make the first move to follow Kyra, but he did nothing. They had a moment of twin telepathy, looking at each other for a split second knowing what the other was thinking, before moving to follow the Elf.

They had only taken a few steps before Thorin grabbed their shoulders. "Let them work. There is nothing you can do to help her now," he said quietly. The twins stared at him, shocked at his words. How could he let them take her, they wondered. They looked at each other again, wondering if they should ignore their uncle's words and follow her anyway. They soon decided that he was right. Though they ached to follow her, they simply stood like statues with their uncle.

Not long after Lindir disappeared out of sight came the sound of hooves beating against stone. They all turned to see ten Elves on horse back running towards them. All but Gandalf pulled out their swords and gathered into a tight circle, ready for anything. The riders circled them many times before they all rode down another path. All but one.

"Mithrandir," the rider said as he dismounted from his horse. "Were you the reason for the Orcs so close to our borders?" he said hand the reins to a servant.

"Yes I am terribly sorry for that," Gandalf said.

"It is good to see you old friend."

"Yes it is. I just wish it were under better circumstances. I am very sorry for barging into your home, Lord Elrond, but we are in desperate need of your help."

"How may I help?" Lord Elrond asked as he eyed the Dwarves.

"We came with a girl, who is badly wounded," Thorin answered harshly.

"Thorin, son of Thrain, son of Thror. I knew your grandfather when he ruled under the mountain," Lord Elrond said.

"He made no mention of you," Thorin snapped. It angered him that Lord Elrond was wasting time talking to them instead of taking care of Kyra.

"You have your grandfathers barring," he said with a smirk. "Eat and rest, I will tend to your friend immediately," he added after a moment. With out another word he walked off in the direction that Lindir had taken Kyra.

A moment later Lindir appeared in front of them, asking them to follow him to the dinning hall. It was more of a dinning balcony than dinning hall. A long low table surrounded by pillows and covered with food sat in the middle of the balcony, which over looked the entire valley. It was truly beautiful, but the Dwarves hardly noticed it. They were so focused on the food in front of them they hardly noticed anything else.

The table was covered in all kinds of fruits and vegetables, most of the Dwarves had never seen before. But they could care less what kind of food it was, they were happy to have food offered to them. The Dwarves ate as if they had not eaten in days. All but Thorin.

He sat at the table watching the others eat, but not really noticing them. His mind was Kyra. He began to silently curse himself for allowing her to come. For so long he had thought the only life he would live without her would be in nightmares, but now. Now he saw a very real life without her, and it terrified him. She was the reason he had not given up to give his people what they deserved, the reason for him to breathe. And even he would admit, though not aloud, that she made him a better person. She was his entire world.

He tried not to think of her. He couldn't stand the idea of her hurt. He wanted to forget what he saw. He wanted to never think of the way she looked, lifeless and limp, in his arms. He began to hate himself as he realized he had broken another promise. He had once promised her that he would never let anything hurt her, he would always protect her. But here they were. She was dying and he could do nothing to save her.

"Master Oakenshield, my Lord Elrond says you may see your friend if you would like," Lindir said quietly.

Fili and Kili, who had been talking amongst themselves, perked up and Lindirs words. Thorin nodded and stood up as he said: "I will come back for you to see her later."

/

Lindir led Thorin to the large room where Kyra was being held. It was a beautiful room, much more so than the balcony. But Thorin didn't notice any of it. He didn't notice that half of the right wall held large archways leading to a balcony overlooking the valley. He didn't notice the bookshelves that covered the far wall, the small dresser and mirror sitting next a stool on the left wall, or the chairs tucked in the right corner next to the door. He barely noticed the bed, pushed up against the right wall just before the archways, and the tall figure standing at the foot of the bed. All he really noticed was the still body lying in the center of the bed.

Thorin stood just inside the room, afraid to move. After a few moments, he began to move slowly to the edge of the bed. He relaxed a little at what he saw. Kyra was peacefully sleeping under the gold and white bed sheets, making the red in her hair stand out more than ever. With a closer look, he soon noticed the missing color in her face and her shallow breathing. "Will she live?" he finally whispered.

"Only she can decide that. She has lost a lot of blood. The wound on her stomach worries me; it is much deeper than it appears. To make matters worse, she has a fever, most likely from the Warg that bit her. I have given her medicine to stop it from getting worse; unfortunately there is not much I can do, I have already done everything I can to help her," Lord Elrond answered. As he looked at Thorin, he saw how much Thorin cared for her. Thorin may be rude and distrusting, but it was obvious that he loved Kyra. "She woke up for a moment, asking for you. Have faith, Thorin Oakenshield, she is very strong," he said as he turned to leave.

Lord Elrond stopped at the door, realizing there was one more thing he could do to help. As an Elf, he believed in protecting life and bringing balance to the world of Middle Earth. From the short time he had spent with Kyra, he knew that she would do good things in this world if she were to live. "I invite you and those who travel with you to stay here as long as you need," he said. "If you would like, I will have my men bring a bed here for you. I can't image you would be comfortable sleeping in a chair," he added as an after thought.

"Thank you," he heard Thorin whisper just as he was about to leave. Thorin never thought he would say those words to an Elf. Let alone mean them, but he was truly grateful for the help Lord Elrond gave him.

Once Thorin truly processed everything, he pulled a chair from the corner of the room and sat down next the bed. He let out a heavy breath as he rubbed his face in his hands. He felt as if he had been forced to live his worst fear. She would never have been hurt if she just listened, he thought. Of course he didn't really blame her, after all her would have done the same thing. But not even logic kept him from cursing himself for not tying her to a tree when he had the chance. Thorin became so lost in his own thoughts, he forgot about the world. He sat and stared at Kyra, no longer noticing anything. He never heard the Elves come in with the bed that Lord Elrond promised or noticed the girl who brought him clean clothes.

As night came, Fili and Kili grew tired of waiting for Thorin to return. They wanted to see Kyra and they didn't care what anyone said, they were determined to see her. When Lindir came to show them their sleeping quarters, Fili and Kili took the advantage of convincing him that they were meant to be with Thorin and Kyra. When they reached the room they reacted the same as Thorin had. They stood just inside the room, frozen like statues, unable to believe the terrible life they were living in.

"Uncle?" they whispered together.

Thorin snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of their voices. He looked around and realized how long he had been sitting there. "Fili, Kili, you should not be here," Thorin said exhausted.

"We aren't leaving," Kili said as he took off his armor and laid it in a pile with his weapons next to the door.

"Kili, this is not-" Thorin began.

"She means the same to us as you do. We are not leaving," Kili challenged. He held his ground under Thorin's glare. He knew he and his brother had as every right as Thorin to wait by Kyra's side.

Fili, who had been a little shocked by the scene unfolding before him, began to take of his armor and weapons laying them down on the floor. "Kili is right. We can take shifts looking after her if you would like," he said as he walked towards Kyra. He wished he hadn't. It pained him to see some one who was full of life and energy, now lifeless and dying.

Thorin gave up. It was no use arguing with them, they were just as stubborn as he was. He nodded to Kili and joined Fili next to the bed. "How bad is it?" Fili asked after a moment as he sat down on a corner of the bed, leaning against the footboard.

"Lord Elrond said she lost a lot of blood and she has a fever. He said there is nothing left that we can do," Thorin answered sitting back down in the chair.

"So we're supposed to sit here and wait? Do nothing?" Kili asked mirroring his brother on the opposite corner of the bed.

Thorin nodded to his nephew before falling back to his thoughts. This time they were not as grim as before. He was glad they had ignored him and stayed with them. He was even proud of them for standing up to him. A memory he had long forgotten came to him as he silently praised his nephews. It was three days after Fili and Kili had first met Kyra, they were sitting in a Tavern. Thorin sat quietly as he watched his nephews and Kyra joke and play games. He remembered being worried that she would be a bad influence to them. A smile began to grow on his face at the memory.

"What is it?" Kili asked.

"Do you remember when you first Kyra?" Thorin asked, not taking his eyes of Kyra.

"Aye," Kili answered

"That was the day Dinn attacked her," Fili added slowly.

"Do you remember sitting in the tavern a few days later? You joked with each other as if she had been your sister, and she told you story's from when she was a girl," Thorin said.

"How she learned to fight," Fili remembered.

"I was worried her influence on you would not be good. That she would teach you to be headstrong, cocky, and stubborn. If you had not met her, I do not think that you or your brother would ever disobey me, Kili. If you had not met her, you boys would not be as strong as you are," Thorin said. He took a deep breathing before continuing again, "and I am proud of who are. Never forget that."

Fili and Kili smiled to each other. They had heard Kyra tell them many times that their uncle was proud of them, but never truly believed her. To hear Thorin tell them himself was everything to them. Of course they knew he loved them, but they wanted to make him proud. Most of the time the only emotion Thorin showed them was anger. How could they know if he was proud of them or simply tolerated them? After hearing Thorin's words, they have never been happier in their lives.

"We too worried that you would be influenced by her," Fili said after a moment.

"I am already stubborn and rude. What influence could she have on me?" Thorin laughed.

"We worried you would turn soft," Kili answered with a smirk.

It was dead silent in the room for a moment before the three of them burst out laughing. For a moment they forgot how serious the world around them was. They were completely careless and happy for the first time in a long time.

"He had turned soft long before I met him," Kyra said weakly.


	8. Chapter 8

The sunlight that woke Kyra up the next morning felt warm and inviting on her skin. She opened her eyes to see Thorin asleep in the chair next to her bed. She smiled at him, he had his face buried in his arms on the bed next her. She was glad to see him sleep. He had looked so tired and worn the night before. She supposed she shouldn't be surprised. He loved her, why wouldn't he be worried?

The last thing she wanted to do was wake him, but a part of her needed his comfort. She hated feeling helpless and if she could she avoided support from others. She liked standing on her own, but there were times when she needed to lean on someone. Before she had met Thorin, she never admitted that she needed the support of others. She still preferred to stand on her own, but when she did lean on someone, it was always Thorin. She gently moved a strand of fallen hair, placing it back where it belonged, before lightly touching his arm to wake him.

"What's wrong?" he asked worried.

"Nothing. I just-…I…I told you to sleep in the bed, not the chair," she said quickly coming up with a reason. She didn't realize that she had no _real_ reason to wake him, and suddenly felt bad for doing so.

Thorin smiled. He knew the real reason why she woke him and he knew that it was hard for her to tell him. "I missed you too," he said quietly.

She smiled as she pushed the blankets back and pulled him to her. Thorin happily slid into the bed next her, leaning on the head board as he wrapped an around her. She was still so weak, Thorin as afraid to touch her for fear that he would hurt her, but quickly ignored his thoughts. He was happy to have her in his arms after thinking he would never hold her again.

"Did the others make it? Is every one Ok?" she asked after a moment.

"Yes, though they are all very worried about you. I sent Fili and Kili to distract them so you could rest."

"And you? Have you eaten or really slept since you got here?"

"You were dying Kyra-"

"That does not give you the right to kill yourself."

"I thought I was loosing you. Do you not think your death would destroy me?" he snapped harshly.

"I was meant to die a long time ago," she whispered to herself.

She hadn't told him much about her past, only that her parents died in a fire and she was later taken in by the stable master and his wife that had raised her. She had once told him that she was meant to die in that fire along side her family. She was alive because she had disobeyed her parents. That was all she ever told him and he never pushed her.

Thorin had prepared himself to snap back at her, but her words had caught him off guard. She never mentioned her family. She avoided being around families at all costs. They had gotten in a fight over it once. Thorin had wanted her to meet his sister, but she refused. He never understood why she had been Ok to meet Fili and Kili but not Dis. After some careful planning on his part, they happened to run into Dis by "accident" in a town near the Blue Mountains, Kyra had been so mad at him she refused to speak to him.

Thorin bent his head to kiss her hair as he gently pulled her closer. "You are the only thing keeping me alive. If you had died in that fire…I would be lost with out you. Never forget that," he whispered.

It was everything Kyra could do not to cry. She had never cried in front of Thorin before and she did plan to start now. As hard as she tried, a tear still escaped, sliding down her cheek. "Damn it," she breathed.

Thorin bent his head to see her face before laughing at what he saw. "I never thought I would see you cry," he laughed as he wiped away the tear.

"I won't be making a habit of it."

Before Thorin could reply, someone knocked softly on the door before opening it. "Have I come at a bad time?" Lord Elrond asked.

"No, please come in," Kyra answered before Thorin could. She was proud of him for putting his anger for the Elves aside for her, but she knew he could still be rude at times.

"How are you feeling?" Lord Elrond asked as he moved to stand at the foot of the bed.

"Better. My leg hurts though."

"You mentioned that this morning, I can give you more medicine if you would like."

"This morning? I last remember being awake last night," she said confused. How could she not remember being awake and talking to someone?

"Lord Elrond came this morning to check on you. He gave you medicine to help the pain but you fell asleep almost immediately after taking it," Thorin answered.

"That tends to happen. It is nothing to worry about, I assure you," he said with a warm smile. "Will you be joining us in the dinning hall, Master Oakenshield?"

"I would like to stay with Kyra, if you don't mind," Thorin answered.

"No go eat with the others. Fili and Kili can stay to keep me company," Kyra said. She didn't want him to leave but he needed time to relax with his friends.

"Then it is settled. I will have food brought for you and your friends," Lord Elrond said.

"Thank you Lord Elrond, but I am afraid I am not hungry," Kyra said politely.

"The medicine I gave you can also do that," he said, more to reassure Thorin that nothing was wrong than anything else. "You need to keep your strength up. I will send some fruits for you. If only a little, you should still try to eat," he added before leaving the room again.

"Why do you try to rid yourself of me?" Thorin asked sounding a little hurt.

"I don't want you to leave me, but I know you, Thorin Oakenshield. Don't deny that you have not left this room since you walked in. Go eat and relax with your friends, let the boys fuss over me for awhile."

"I will relax when you are on your feet."

They fell into silence, happy to finally be together. After a moment, Kyra had fallen asleep to the sound of Thorin's heart beat, and began to dream of the first they had spent together in the same bed.

/

_She was tired and sore from the adrenalin leaving her body and from the beating Dinn had given her. She only took off her coat and armor, not wanting to move if she didn't have to, and curled up in the bed. She fell asleep to the faint sound of laughter and songs that came from the tavern below her. She didn't really sleep for fear that Dinn would come back and finish the job he had started. Not long after falling asleep, she felt a hand carefully put a fallen strand hair that lay on her face back in place. When she opened her eyes she did not expect to see the man that stood before her. _

_"Thorin?" she said confused._

_"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to wake you. I just wanted to make sure you were Ok."_

_She couldn't believe what she heard. In the time she had known Thorin she had never heard him apologize directly like that. "No, don't be. I wasn't really sleeping," she said still trying to wrap her head around the fact that he had apologized to her. "Thank you for what you did earlier"_

_"You're welcome," he said. From the way his eyes stared at her, she felt as if he didn't want to leave, but couldn't think of a reason to stay. "You should get some rest. Good night, Kyra," he said after a moment. He was almost to the door, when she realized how much she didn't want to be alone._

_"Thorin, would mind staying with me tonight? I-…I don't want to be alone," she said quietly._

_"Are you asking for protection?" he asked with a crooked smile._

_After hearing his words, a part of her no longer wanted him there. She glared at him for a moment, deciding whether or not she wanted him to stay or not. "I ask for your company, not your protection," she answered, choosing her words carefully._

_He chuckled to himself and shook his head. "It's the same thing if you think about it," he said taking off his coat and armor._

_He slid into the bed next to her, lying on his back with an arm wrapped around her. At first she thought being this close to him would be awkward and uncomfortable for her, but it was just the opposite. They fit perfectly together. The sound of his breathing and the beat of his heart beat had relaxed her the second she laid her head on his chest. _

_"I'm sorry for what happened between you and Dinn. I did not mean to cause trouble," she said quietly._

_"Dinn is hotheaded and spoiled. You were right to him in his place," he said. _

_She loved the way his voice rumbled in his chest beneath her. She could listen to him for hours if she could. Part of her even wished they could stay in the bed forever. She felt safe while he held her, but the logic in her head soon kicked in. Just because she felt the way she did for him, did not mean he felt the same. She decided to not worry about what she could not control and enjoy being comforted. _

_As if he knew what she was thinking, Thorin began lightly rub his hand along her arm. She couldn't help but give a tired but content sigh, before falling asleep safe and sound in his arms._

/

Kyra knew before she opened her eyes that it was no longer Thorin that held her. She didn't bother to worry who it was; there were only two people in Middle Earth who Thorin would let touch her like this. She stirred lightly, trying to get comfortable, before giving up on sleep.

"Did we wake you?" Kili asked sitting at the foot of the bed.

"No," Kyra answered as she slowly sat up.

"Are you hungry? Lord Elrond says you needed to eat when you woke up," Fili said unwrapping his arm from Kyra.

Once she sat up she noticed the large bowl of fruit sitting in front of Kili. She didn't feel hungry but she knew she should eat. After all, the food could only help her get stronger and back on her feet. "Maybe some strawberries," she said after a minute.

"How did you sleep?" Kili asked putting a handful of strawberries in a small bowl and handing them to Kyra.

"Good. How long was asleep?" she asked as she started to eat.

"Thorin said you fell asleep about an hour before we came in," Kili answered.

"And we haven't been here long," Fili added.

"I told you she wouldn't sleep long once he left," Kili told his brother.

"Aye, you're not completely mental…yet," Fili said with a smile.

"I swear I saw her! I'll find her again before we leave and show you," Kili said animated.

Kyra hadn't been paying much attention to the conversation until now. She had known the boys for a long time, the three of them were close, but neither had ever mentioned a girl before. "Saw who?" she asked puzzled.

"Kili claims to have seen a cute Dwarf girl running around. The only is problem no one else has seen her," Fili answered with a smirk. It was obvious that he didn't believe his brother.

"She's real I tell you," Kili said frustrated that his brother didn't believe him.

"Well when you find her, I want to meet her," Kyra said.

They fell into small chit-chat, none of which Kyra paid any attention too. Her leg began to ach badly as well as her stomach. Lord Elrond had come in to give her medicine to ease the pain, but she refused to take it until Thorin came back. Thankfully, Lord Elrond had been gracious enough to understand and leave the medicine on the bedside table for her to take when she was ready.

She would have taken the medicine just to make the pain stop, but she needed to talk to Thorin. Her mind had begun to wonder how long it was going to take before she was healed, that was when she realized it. It would take her at least a month before she could travel. There was no way she could let Thorin be delayed that long. Taking back Erebor was his dream, she thought, asking to put that on hold would be cruel. She hated to even think it, but she needed to convince Thorin to leave her behind. He had already wasted three days here, Kyra needed to talk to him soon before they wasted any more time.

She was half asleep, wrapped in Fili's arms, when Thorin came back. Kyra never felt uncomfortable when Fili or Kili held her like that, and Thorin was never threatened by it. He knew Kyra loved the boys and they loved her, but it was a different love from the way he loved Kyra and she loved him. Kyra trusted them, that was all. She trusted them the way she would trust them if they were her own blood. That was the only reason why Thorin was Ok leaving her with them. Of course he trusted the others and so did she, but he always felt a little uneasy when she wasn't with him. At least when she was with Fili and Kili, he knew that she was as safe with them as she would be with him.

Kyra was awake enough to know that Thorin had lid into the bed next to her. She felt Fili gently unwrap his arm from around her and lightly push her into Thorin's arms, before he and his brother said good night. "I love you," she sighed as she buried her face in Thorin's chest. From what she could tell, he was wearing his trousers and a thin linen shirt. She would have been happier there had been no shirt at all, but didn't complain.

"I love you too," he whispered before kissing her hair.

"I dreamed about you," she said with a yawn.

"What was the dream about?" he asked as he began to lightly rub her arm the way he always did.

"The night we first spent in bed together in Nimear. Do you remember?"

"Yes. One of the best nights of my life."

"Will you promise me that you will be safe?" she asked forcing herself to wake up a little. She knew he was going to fight her, but she had to convince him to leave her behind.

"Safe? What do you mean?"

"When you leave for Erebor, do you promise that you will be safe?"

"What do you mean leave?" Kyra could tell he was starting to piece it together and wasn't happy about it.

"Thorin, you have to leave me here. You have to leave me here and take back Erabor," she said turning to look up at him. She released the full power of her eyes on him, hopping he wouldn't put up a fight against them.

"I'm not leaving you," he said placing a hand on her cheek. "I will not break that promise again."

"Thorin you have too. It could take months before I'm healed, I will not ask you to put Erebor on hold for that long," she said firmly.

"No."

"First I can't get you to stay and now I can't get you to leave," she laughed.

"I will not leave."

"Thorin-"

"There is nothing you can do to change my mind. Accept it Kyra, I am not leaving you," he snapped.

"Stubborn old fool," she grumbled laying her head back on his chest.

"Would you leave me?" he asked after a minute.

"That is different. I don't want Erebor the way you-."

"Would you leave?"

"…no…" she said unhappy where their conversation was going.

"Then there is no point in arguing. I will not leave you behind, and this is last I want to hear of it," he said quietly. "And don't bother talking to the boys, they'll not agree with you either," he added.

"Stubborn old fool," she said one more time. It was rare she lost a fight with him, and she hated it every time. "Damn you and your blood," she added to prove how angry she was with him.

Thorin laughed at her. He knew she wasn't that mad, otherwise she would have pushed him away. She was upset with him for not putting his feelings for her aside and doing what needed to be done, and he knew it. "A stubborn fool who loves you," he whispered.

"Just my luck to fall in love with the most stubborn man in Middle Earth," she answered. She felt Thorin's chest rumble with soft laughter underneath her before he kissed her hair one more time. She pulled herself closer to him and sighed one more time before falling asleep in his arms.


	9. Chapter 9

It had been almost a whole month since Kyra and the others arrived in Rivendell. Kyra was growing stronger everyday and Thorin more relaxed. The color in her face had come back, her breathing was no longer shallow, she ate more, and she was even walking again. When she had the energy she would walk in the garden or to a nearby waterfall and spend most of her day there, usually with Thorin by her side. She often tried to convince Thorin to spend more time with his men, but it was useless. He was determined to spend as much time with her as he could.

"Why don't you ever spend time with the others? Why do you stay with me all day? Don't you miss being them?" Kyra had asked one day, leaning against him as they sat on a river bank, watching the water.

"I spent a day thinking that I would loose you. I realized no time with you will be ever be enough, but I will take what I can get," he answered quietly. "Are you growing tired of me?"

"No, never. I just don't want you to think that you have to stay with me."

After that she had tried to see the others when she walked around Rivendell. They often met after lunch near a river, singing songs and playing games, as if it were an average day for them, even Bilbo seemed to enjoy himself a little. Kyra was glad to see the others relax and enjoy themselves, she didn't want them to worry over her, Thorin did enough of that already.

Today was different than the others. Kyra woke up full of energy for the first time in a long time, and she decided to take advantage of it. She had been getting stronger and more stable when she walked, you barely noticed a limp in her stride now, but she still couldn't walk as far as she would have liked without getting tired. Luckily for Kyra, what she had in mind didn't involve walking. She slowly slid out from under Thorin's arm and quietly headed to the bathroom. As quickly as she could she washed her face, put on her pants and shirt, and contained her curly hair into one long braid that hung over her right shoulder. She took one good look at herself in the mirror and sighed, it felt good to be out of the dress the Elves put her in and back in her own clothes.

She didn't hate dresses but didn't love them either. For as long as she could remember, she preferred pants to a skirt. Kyra remembered faint memories from her childhood, arguing with her mother about how a lady never wore pants, but quickly dismissed them. She was not about to let the memory of her old life ruin her day. After a few moments she had successfully made it out of the bathroom and almost to bedroom door without waking Thorin, before she realized that she didn't expect to get this far without Thorin waking up. Now that she had, she needed a new plan. After a moment of thinking, she quickly pulled a pen and piece of paper from the desk and wrote, "Everything is fine. I couldn't sleep and decided to take a walk. Please don't worry about me. Spend time with the others, go train, do what ever you want but please don't worry about me or come looking for me. Go spend time with Fili and Kili, they miss you. I'll be back later, I promise. I love you, Thorin Oakenshield." She folded the paper and placed it on the bed next to him before leaving.

Kyra had almost made it to the entrance of Lord Elrond's palace before she was noticed by someone.

"Lady Kyra, I did not expect to see you up so soon. Is everything alright?" Lord Elrond asked her as he crossed her path.

Kyra jumped and gave a small gasp. She hadn't been worried about running into Lord Elrond; she had faith that he would keep her secret if she asked him, but he had come out of no where. "Lord Elrond, you scared me," she breathed.

"Always a sign that you are up to no good," he said with a kind smile. In the time Kyra had spent in Rivendell, she had grown to like him. He was kind and spent a lot of his time making sure that she would recover from her injuries. She also liked that he was not one to lie to you. "May I ask where you are sneaking off to?"

"I was looking for you actually," not a 100% true but as long as he was here she might as well get his permission, "I was wondering if you had a pony that I could borrow for a few hours. I grew up around horses and I can't remember the last time I've gone this long without a ride. Of course I promise to stay in Rivendell," she said politely.

He narrowed his eyes at her and thought for a moment before answering. "My daughter, Arwen, also enjoys to ride. If you do not mind her company, I will allow you to sneak away from your friends for a few hours," he said as his smile grew.

It didn't surprise Kyra that he knew what she was up to. She was up before the others, trying to pass unseen as she left the palace; it was not hard to piece it all together. "I think I would really enjoy her company, thank you," she answered with a smile.

"Wait here and I will go get her," he said as he turned to leave.

Kyra sighed as she sat on a nearby bench to rest her leg, she didn't think she would have gotten this far. At most she expected to get to the dining hall before either Bilbo, Gandalf, or one of the Dwarves noticed her, or Thorin woke up. It never crossed her mind that she might actually make it out of the palace unseen. Of course she never counted on being spotted by Lord Elrond either, but she was more worried about the Dwarves than the Elves. "Kyra?" the familiar voice said snapping her back to reality.

"Bilbo," she said letting out the breath, "what are you doing up?" she asked as she stood up.

"I was going to get some breakfast," he said walking over to her. "What are you doing up so early? You usually sleep much longer."

"It won't be long until the others wake up," she said absentmindedly. "Bilbo my friend, you must promise me you will not tell anyone that you have seen me," she said firmly.

Bilbo opened his mouth to ask what she was up to, but was cut off by Lord Elrond.

"Kyra," he said.

"Yes, one moment," she answered over her shoulder. "Please, Bilbo tell no one. Especially Thorin. If you must tell them that you saw me, tell them that you do not know anything other than I am safe." Not wanting to give him the chance to protest, she turned on her heal and walked quickly to Lord Elrond to meet his daughter. "I am terribly sorry to keep you waiting," she said with a smile.

"Lady Kyra this is my daughter, Arwen," Lord Elrond said gesturing to the woman next him.

She had dark brown hair, which fell to the middle of her back, and warm brown eyes. The emerald green dress and gold belt that set low on her hips, only made her hair and eyes stand out more. She was very beautiful, Kyra thought to herself, but then again most Elves are. "Lady Kyra," she said as she bowed her head.

"Lady Arwen," Kyra said as she mirrored Arwen's movement. "Forgive me if I disrespect you, I am not used to formalities," she said shyly. The moment she addressed Arwen, she realized that she wasn't sure if she call her Lady Arwen or princess Arwen.

Arwen smiled at her. "That is perfectly fine. We can dispense of them for today if you would like?"

Kyra had been a little worried that she would not get along with Arwen, but after hearing her words she no longer worried. "I would like that," she said smiling back. "I am ready to leave when you are." Arwen smiled at her and began to lead the way. Kyra took two steps after her before she remembered Bilbo. She quickly turned, not surprised to see him still standing where she had left him, and gave him a pleading look to keep her secret.

She was about to do the same to Lord Elrond when he waved a hand at her, "It is not my secret to tell. I will not tell the others." Kyra smiled at him before running to catch up with Arwen.

She instantly regretted the decision to run, pain shot through her leg. Luckily, Arwen was not far ahead. It was not a far walk to the stables, about a five minute walk from the palace. Once they arrived, Arwen spoke to the stable boy, who was brushing one of the horses, in a language Kyra did not understand. The boy nodded and disappeared into the barn, Kyra guessed Arwen had asked him to saddle a horse and pony for them.

"How strong is your leg?" Arwen asked after a moment.

"Strong enough to ride, I'm sure."

"I thought we could go to a favorite spot of mine in the mountain behind the palace. You can see the whole valley from there, but it is half a day's ride just to get there. We would not return until after dark, do you think your leg is strong enough to ride that long?"

"I should think so, yes."

"And your friends? They will not worry that you are gone for so long?"

"I am sure that they will, but it will be good for them. I think they have forgotten that I can take care of myself," Kyra answered. All of the things Thorin will most likely say when she returns suddenly rushed through her head. There was no doubt in her mind that he will be angry with her, but it was him that needed to be reminded that she does not always need his protection.

"I am sure it will not take long for them to remember. You seem to like standing on your own," Arwen answered with a smile.

Not a moment later, a young Elf handed her a pack. Kyra knew instantly that it wasn't just any old pack; it was the kind of pack that someone attached to their saddle to hold all sorts of things. She also noticed it was full of food. "What is that?" she asked.

"Food for our trip. It may be a short, but I imagine we will be hungry along the way."

"You knew I would agree," Kyra said with a sly smile. She was really beginning to like Arwen.

"I had hoped," Arwen answered with the same smile Kyra had given her.

A few minuets later the boy Arwen talked to came back with a grey horse saddled and a pony that looked just the same. After a few minutes, Kyra and Arwen were on their horses headed to Arwen's favorite spot in the mountains. They rode in silence for most of the ride through the mountain. Occasionally Arwen would speak to point something to Kyra or to ask if she would like an apple, but rarely spoke. As the hours went by, Kyra's leg began to ache. When she agreed to follow Arwen into the mountain, she didn't realize that going up hill would bother her leg as much as it did. Luckily, soon after her leg began to ache, they reached the spot they were looking for.

After tying her pony to a tree, Kyra decided to take a look around while Arwen unpacked the food. She understood why Arwen liked it here so much. Hidden by trees and bushes was a small beautiful clearing. There was a small waterfall with a small pond at the bottom. Beautiful wildflowers were scattered through the clearing that was split in two by a thin river running from the pond to the cliff. The sight Kyra saw from the cliff stunned her completely. The sight of the valley was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. She wasn't sure what made it so beautiful; all she knew was that she never wanted to move from her spot. She didn't know she had sat down near the cliff until Arwen sat down next to her.

"It's beautiful, isn't it," Arwen said as she laid out a blanket and food.

"I understand why it's your favorite place in Rivendell," Kyra said, barely aware of the world around her.

"I spent most of my days as a child here."

"How did you force yourself to go back?"

"If I didn't, my father would send his to look for me."

"He doesn't know?"

"He knows I have a hide away, but he does not know where."

They fell into silence as they ate. They had long finished their food and the sun had begun to set before the silence was broken.

"May I ask you something Kyra?" Arwen asked.

Kyra had been in her own head for most of their time in the clearing, but the tone in Arwen's voice snapped her back to reality. Every time Arwen spoke, she sounded confident in her words, but not this time. This time she sounded nervous. "Of course," Kyra said.

"What is it like? Being in love," Arwen asked. Kyra knew instantly that she was a little embarrassed for asking, but wanted to know the answer to her question.

"Its one of the most amazing things. Nothing else in the world matters except the person you love. You would do anything they wanted, just to make them smile," Kyra answered, not looking away from the view in front of her. "Why do you ask?" she added after a moment.

"In my future, I've seen myself with a human who said he loved me," Arwen answered.

"My only advice to you my friend is this, follow your heart and you will not go wrong," Kyra said placing a hand on Arwen's. Kyra didn't know that her words would still ring loudly in Arwen's ears years after her death. All she wanted was to help her new friend the best way she could, but had no idea how much her words would mean to Arwen.

Arwen smiled at her. "Thank you," she said. They fell into a peaceful silence for several moments before Arwen spoke again. "We should go, it will late by the time we get back."

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**I know this was not my best chapter, I have been very busy with school, and I am very sorry it took me so long to update. I promise the next chapter will be better - may or may not be some romance with Thorin and Kyra - and I promise to do my best to update it as soon as I have time! Thank you so much for reading my story!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Ok, first off, I am so sorry it has taken me so long to update. Life has been crazy and I had hoped to write over the summer but I ran out of time and I am really sorry for that. Second, for some reason I can't stand the word "trousers", don't know why, so when I describe their clothes it will sound very modern because for some unknown reason I hate the word "trousers". Again, I am so sorry it took me so long to update and I want to say thank you to the people who stayed waiting for the day I would finally update. And as a reward a little fluff for you guys! enjoy!**

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By the time Kyra and Arwen came back to the palace, almost everyone was asleep. She desperately hoped that Thorin would be among those who were asleep, but she knew her chances were slim. He was probably sitting in the chair in the corner waiting, she thought grimly. She had to admit, she wasn't looking forward to seeing him at the moment. Arwen had offered to prolong her meeting with Thorin by offering her some food, after all it had been since their picnic that they last ate, but Kyra declined her. She knew how mad Thorin might be and wanted to avoid him, but knew avoiding him would only make things worse. Kyra said goodnight to her new friend before reluctantly heading to her room.

"I was beginning to think you were never coming back," a voice said tiredly as Kyra walked into her room.

"I promised I would," she said as she closed the door and leaned against the wall to face Thorin. She smiled inwardly; he was right where she knew he would be. After all the time they had spent together, he had become predictable to her, just as she was sure she had to him, but they surprised each other often. Kyra silently promised herself to listen to everything he had to say and let him yell at her without fighting back. After all she did this to herself by sneaking off without telling anyone where she was going or who she was with. He had every right to be angry with her.

"You came after me when I promised you the same," he said without looking at her. "You did not believe I would come back."

It was obvious to Kyra how worried he had been about her. He was slumped in the chair that sat in the corner of the room, leaning forward with his hand clasped together. His face was covered with worry, fear, and anger because she had left him with no assurance that she was safe. It hurt her to see him like this, and the pain wasn't eased when she reminded herself that she had been the one to cause it, but instantly reminded herself she had no choice. In the month she had spent recovering, she saw that Thorin and the others were slowly forgetting that she could take care of herself, and that was not Ok with her. She was more than grateful that she had them to support her when she needed them the most, but now she didn't need them to hover over her and she was getting tired of being treated like a helpless girl.

"After you told me your plan to feed yourself to a dragon," Kyra laughed. "I left you for a day, you planned to leave me forever, of course I came after you," she said quietly as she took a step toward him, instantly regretting it. If Kyra was being honest, she knew going for a day long ride was too much for her leg, she knew she was not ready, but her stubbornness took hold. Her leg ached most of the ride back and making it to her room had been almost impossible. Her leg screamed in pain under her weight, it was becoming hard to stand, but she wasn't going to let him know that. "I knew where you were going, Thorin. I knew you weren't coming back."

"At least you knew. You told me nothing but to sit and wait. You told the Halfling but you did not tell me. I knew nothing Kyra," he snapped, refusing to look at her.

"I was supposed to find comfort in that? To wake in an empty bed knowing your plan to feed yourself and Fili and Kili and everyone to a dragon was sickening. Knowing I would never see you or the boys again-" Kyra stopped, taking a deep breath. If she didn't calm herself, it would be next to impossible to keep herself from falling apart, and she couldn't fall apart, Thorin need her to be strong. Kyra stared at the floor breathing deeply, willing herself to calm down. "Bilbo knew nothing. He only saw me leave and that is all. I made sure not to tell anyone where I was going so that you could not come after me," she snapped back at him under her breath.

"In doing so, no one knew if you were safe," he almost shouted at her as he stood up and faced her. "What if something happened, Kyra? You are not strong enough to fight or even run. I do not care if you go off on your own but you need to take some one with you," he added harshly, he tried to hide the anger in his voice but it still slipped through as he spoke.

Kyra had been trying to control her anger but could not control herself after hearing his words. "I am not some helpless girl," she spat, her voice dripping with venom. She expected to be treated like a helpless girl by those who did not know her, and even then she barely tolerated it, but Thorin had never treated her like she was helpless and she wasn't going to let him start now.

Before Kyra knew what happened, Thorin had grabbed her arms and pinned her against the wall. If the anger in his eyes were not enough to tell her how mad he was, the grip he had on her arms got the point across. Some where in her head she knew his grip would leave marks on her arms, but she was too angry to care. "Everything I have done was to make sure you were safe. I will not let your stubbornness put you in danger anymore," he spat back at her.

"You do not own me, Thorin Oakenshield. I am free to do what I want and I certainly do not need to ask for permission to go where I want. I do not need your approval to live my life," she snapped. If she didn't know him so well, she would have backed down the second he pinned her to the wall, but she knew that he would never hurt her. No matter how angry he could get, he would never lay a hand on her. Unfortunately, that meant she could push him as far as she wanted without fear of being hit. "Don't you dare forget that," she growled.

"Damn it, Kyra. I can't protect you if I don't know where you are," he yelled. He didn't realize that as he spoke, his grip on Kyra's arms tightened as he unknowingly shoved her against the wall.

It wasn't until then that Kyra understood why he was acting like this. It was no secret to her that Thorin didn't like letting her leave his sight, but he never acted like this. He never demanded to know where she was going or followed her like he had been doing the past few weeks. Until know she thought the small changes in him were because of the Elves. She thought he just didn't trust them enough to leave her alone, but she was wrong. The changes she saw in him had nothing to do with the Elves at all.

"Is that what this is about? The Warg?" she asked quietly.

Kyra knew instantly she was right, the second she spoke the anger in his eyes started to disappear. Thorin said nothing as he let go of her arms and looked away from her, feeling guilty once he realized his grip was probably hurting her. "You almost died," he finally said. He was careful not to let anyone know how badly that had shaken him, not even Kyra. He saw how death sometimes haunted her dreams; he didn't want to make things worse by telling her.

"Thorin, I jumped in front of that Warg so that it would not kill _you_. You could not have stopped that," Kyra said softly. After a moment of silence, she couldn't stand that he refused to look at her. She laid a hand on his cheek, gently pulling his face towards her, forcing him to look at her, as she leaned into him. The pain and guilt she saw in his eyes as he stared down at her made her own heart break. She felt so stupid for not realizing how much her near-death experience affected him, she knew he was worried at the thought of loosing her, but she didn't know it still had a hold on him. "There are some things even _you_ can't protect me from," she whispered.

"I can try," he said stubbornly, wrapping his arms around her waist.

Kyra smiled and gave a small giggle at his stubbornness, amazed how stubborn he could be, even now. She placed a small kiss on his lips before she spoke. "You would only push me away," she whispered. "Thorin, you can't lock me in a cage to protect me and not expect me to hate you. Promise me you'll stop this, that you'll let me stand on my own again. I can't take being treated like a helpless child much longer, not from you. Promise me, Thorin. Please," she pleaded as she pulled away slightly.

He stared at her for a moment, wondering if he had the strength to keep his promise, before nodding his head in agreement. "I promise," he whispered as he pulled her closer. He lightly placed a kiss on her lips, over and over, soon letting his tongue explore her bottom lip. Each kiss sent electricity down Kyra's spine, causing her to tangle her fingers deep into Thorin's hair, but it wasn't enough. She wanted to feel as much of him as she possibly could. She took a small step back, pulling Thorin with her, until she felt the wall behind her. Instantly knowing what Kyra wanted, Thorin used his body to push her harder against the wall as he intensified the kiss. Kyra gave a small moan, happy to feel the pressure of him against her. Satisfied, for the moment, she untangled her fingers from his hair to move them to his chest. Sometimes it bothered her how easy he could make her melt into his hands, that a few kisses could make her forget the rest of the world, but at the moment she could care less.

She let her hands wonder up and down his perfect chest and stomach, before realizing something was wrong. He was still wearing his armor, but it wasn't just the armor that bugged her. What truly bugged her was that they were still wearing all of their clothes, and at the moment she had little patience for that. She quickly ripped the armor off and threw it to the floor, happy that there was one less layer between them. Thorin gave a small smile into the kiss; he didn't need her to speak for him to know why she threw his armor to the ground. There were in fact many times he didn't need her to speak for him to know what was going through her head. Most days he could tell what she would say before she opened her mouth, but he never said a word to her about it. He could care less if she was whispering "I love you" in his ear or yelling at him, he just wanted to hear her voice.

Not daring to break the kiss, he let his hand wonder around Kyra's hips only to land on her rump. He detached his lips from hers and moved them to her neck, tightening his grip on her and pulling her closer, grinding his hips into hers. Kyra tilted her head back against the wall and let loose another small moan at his movement, which only encouraged him more. She sucked in a sharp breath and smiled as she felt Thorin's teeth begin to lightly bite her neck, sending shivers down her spine. As he continued to assault her neck and the electric current running through her body became stronger, Kyra's patience grew very thin. She was tired of going in circles, she wanted to feel the warmth of his skin on hers, to feel every movement of his body, and she wanted it now.

Without giving any warning to Thorin, she pulled his lips back to hers throwing him into a very rough and deep kiss. Soon getting the message, Thorin slowly trailed his hand up her body, making sure to explore as much of her as he could, before sliding off the light weight coat she had on. As her coat fell to the floor, Kyra pulled away just enough yank off Thorin's shirt and tossed it some where behind him, not bothering to take her time and draw things out like Thorin. After being freed from his shirt he immediately took her face in his hands, pulling her to him as he felt her hands trail up and down his chest. Every line that she traced on his body made it that much harder to control himself, that much harder to keep himself from throwing her on the bed and taking everything she had to offer. At this point he knew that the only thing that kept him from doing what he wanted was his fear of hurting her. She was so much smaller than him; it would be easy for him to get carried away and seriously hurt her. In reality she was only a few inches shorter than him and her muscles were well toned from her years of travelling and fighting, but no matter how many times she proved her strength to him, he was still much stronger.

As Kyra traced her fingers over his chest she could feel him tense and hesitate. Normally she would have slowed down, letting him choose how fast they moved but she had no patience for it today, the need to feel him was growing to be unbearable. She kicked off her shoes and slowly dragged her hands down Thorin's chest and stomach until they found what they were looking for. Kyra quickly undid his belt and pants not wanting to give him the chance to stop her. Once Thorin fully realized what she had done, he pulled away not knowing how much longer his fear would over rule his desire for her. But before he could stop her, Kyra placed a hand on the back of his neck and pulled him down to her, throwing him in another rough kiss. Slowly but surely, Thorin began to relax with every movement of her body against his, letting his hands explore her body before taking a firm grip on her hips. It was getting harder and harder to control himself; every movement of Kyra's lips against his pushed him that much closer to his breaking point.

As the tension grew inside him, so did his grip on Kyra's hips. Some where in her head she knew there would be bruises there by morning too, but once again couldn't bring herself to care. She pulled him closer to her, sandwiching herself between him and the wall behind her, before grinding her hips against his. That one small movement of her hips was the last straw for Thorin, that one small movement took what little control he still had in him. With a small grunt, he quickly lifted her up and pinned her against the wall with no escape. Kyra instantly wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him as close to her as she could, before locking her arms around his neck. At this point it was getting hard to tell where one began and the other ended, but no matter how close they were to each other, it wasn't enough.

Kyra soon slowed her assault on Thorin's mouth, letting him invade hers, giving him control. Thorin immediately noticed when she stopped fighting him for power and dominance and decided to test whether or not she meant it. Reluctantly, he moved his lips from hers and brought them down on her neck, kissing his way down to her collarbone. He heard Kyra suck in a sharp breath as he bit her collar bone. He kissed where he had bitten her several times before slowly moving his lips up her neck and back to hers, but instead of throwing her in another rough kiss, like she expect, he barely brushed his lips against hers. Kyra wanted so much more than a soft kiss, but every times she tried to deepen the kiss, Thorin pulled away just far enough to keep her from accomplishing her goal. She tried several times with no success, no matter what she did he would not give into her. Of course Thorin knew how badly she wanted him, but he wanted to make sure he was in control.

After another moment of teasing her, Thorin quickly used his body to slam Kyra into the wall, grinding his hips hard against her as his tongue invaded her mouth. But just as quickly, he moved slightly away from the wall and began to kiss her even softer than he had before. Kyra couldn't take it anymore, she needed to feel him, she felt like she would die if he continued to torture her like this. "Thorin, please," she whimpered between kisses as she curled her fingers in his hair, "please." Thorin knew he was in full power when she spoke, it was the sign he was looking for that she was under his control completely. He instantly deepened the kiss, once again invading her mouth, as he turned away from the wall and in the direction of the bed. After given what she wanted for only a few seconds, Kyra was ripped from Thorin as he threw her back onto the bed, but was immediately pinned down by his body.

He gave her one single rough kiss before pulling himself off of her, causing her to moan at the sudden lack contact she had with him, but didn't move. Thorin ignored her protest as he undid her belt and pants before quickly ripping them from her body; he had pulled them off her so fast that she almost fell off the bed. With a shriek, Kyra twisted her body and pulled her self back to the center of the bed. Before she could turn back to face Thorin, she felt him snake a hand under her before he quickly flipped her over to her back, causing her to giggle uncontrollably as he balanced his weight on her. He smiled quickly, glad to see her happy and giggling, before kissing her deeply. He wasted no time in finding the hem of her shirt before he pulled it off her, but where he should have seen her skin he saw another shirt. Under Kyra's outer shirt, was a thin dark blue linen shirt that was covered with black burn marks. It was obvious that it wasn't her shirt, it was way too big for her, the bottom of the shirt stopped in the middle of her thigh and she had rolled up the sleeves to fit the length of her arms better.

"Thorin? What's wrong?" Kyra asked when she noticed him starring.

"Why," he asked quietly. It didn't bother him that she was wearing it, he just couldn't figure out why. He used to wear it while he worked as a blacksmith, causing the burn marks. He knew it was his because of the rip on the left shoulder. Dinn had ripped it while they fought the night he attacked Kyra.

"To have something of you near by when we weren't travelling together," Kyra answered as she propped herself up on her elbows. "I did not think you would mind," she added quietly.

Thorin noticed how embarrassed Kyra was to admit that she needed him. She may not have said it out loud, but it was written clear as day in her eyes. He said nothing as he lowered himself back down to her, kissing her softly, letting her know that he understood. She relaxed under the pressure of his body weight and let him pin her down to the bed again. After he felt Kyra completely relax under him, he shifted his weight off his hands and let them slowly travel down her body, exploring every line and curve of her body. He trailed his mouth down her body, softly kissing every place his hands had been before slowly pushing the hem of her shirt up to her stomach. It was then he happened to notice the scar.

A light pink scar stretching across her stomach, just under her ribs, almost to the navel on the right side of Kyra's stomach. Thorin stared and traced the scare lightly with his fingers as distance memories came rushing back to him. "Ugly, isn't it," she whispered. Kyra did everything she could not to let Thorin see the ugly thing and had done very well at that task, Thorin hadn't seen the scar since they fought the trolls. She didn't want him to be reminded of the time he almost lost her; she didn't want him to relive that every time he saw it. She watched him carefully as he traced his rough hands over the scar, over and over again.

"No," he whispered. He had spoken so softly he barely heard himself but was afraid to speak any louder than he had too. He had always seen Kyra as the perfect woman. Everything about her was perfect and beautiful. The scar alone was an ugly thing, but somehow it didn't look so ugly on her. Some how it added to her beauty.

Thorin stopped tracing the scar with his hands just long enough to replace them with his mouth. He kissed the scar softly over and over before pulling himself away from her long enough to take off his own pants. Of course the second his remaining clothes hit the floor he was on Kyra, carefully balancing his weight so he didn't crush her as he kissed her roughly. Kyra moaned at the feeling of him on her skin. She let her hands explore his chest as she let him invade her mouth with his tongue. Thorin let her hands explore his body for only a moment before he pulled her shirt off completely and threw it off the bed. Instead of letting her hands trail his body again, he grabbed her wrists and pinned them to the bed. He smiled down at her as he took in every detail he saw. Her messy braid, perfectly unclothed body, her green eyes shining in the dark, he didn't want to forget any of it. He smiled one more time before lowering himself back down to her, with no intention of forcing himself away from her anytime soon.


End file.
